Whitefish starts fast, finishes strong
WHITEFISH - Don't let the final score fool you - this one didn't come easily.
But the Lady Bulldogs clawed to a crucial win, and they're still in the conference title hunt with another showdown looming.
The Whitefish High School girls' basketball team used a fast start and a strong finish to pull away from Ronan on Thursday night for a 59-39 Northwestern A victory.
The Lady Bulldogs improved to 5-1 in league play, keeping them within striking distance of undefeated Bigfork (7-0) and a step ahead of Libby (3-2), which visits Whitefish tonight.
Senior guards Kate Klundt and Ashley Ferda had monster nights for Whitefish, scoring 20 points apiece. Klundt added eight rebounds and four assists, while Ferda had seven boards, five assists and four steals.
Whitefish raced to an early 11-0 lead, but Ronan pulled within 26-19 at halftime. The Maidens (0-6 Northwestern A, 3-9 overall) twice trailed by only two points late in the third quarter before the Lady Bulldogs exploded for a 27-9 game-ending run, including a 21-9 fourth quarter.
"I think it was about time," Ferda said. "We were just kind of going through the motions, and we realized when it got to a two-point lead there that we actually needed to tune it up a little bit and get some things going."
Ronan senior Ishan Wylie scored a team-high 12 points off the bench. Her bucket with 1:06 left in the third quarter pulled the Maidens within 32-30 - and then the Lady Bulldogs took over.
Whitefish used an 8-0 run to build a 10-point cushion, and led by at least eight points the rest of the way. Ferda poured in 13 points in the final frame, and Klundt added four.
Klundt also sparked the Lady Bulldogs' opening surge, scoring nine straight Whitefish points in the first quarter after senior post Amanda Ormsby tallied four points in the first 41 seconds.
Ferda went 9-for-10 from the free-throw line, including 8-for-8 in the fourth quarter, en route to 15 second-half points. She spent the first half distributing the ball to her teammates, leading to open looks down the stretch.
"I'm just trying to take the shots that are given to me," she said. "I'm not trying to create too many on my own. I'm trying to get the ball to some people down low and just find the open person. Everyone was knocking down some good shots."
Ormsby finished with seven points and eight rebounds, and Desiree Clarke and Dana Labuda combined for nine points.
Ronan junior forwards Kaylee Larson and Carli Starkel scored 11 and 10 points, respectively, to pace a balanced Maidens attack. The game bore little resemblance to the teams' December meeting when Whitefish led 54-30 after three quarters.
"We had our hands full tonight," Whitefish coach Tim Olson said. "We knew Ronan added some players from when we saw them earlier in the year, and they've improved tremendously. They played us tough for that first half, and we needed to kick it in gear and challenge the kids and have somebody step up."
The Lady Bulldogs leaned heavily on their bench, substituting early and often in an effort to stay fresh for Libby while developing depth for the stretch run. Clarke, Heather Melcer and McCara Cullen totaled eight points off the bench, while Whitefish's other reserves were invaluable in spelling starters.
"They're getting some opportunities to prove themselves," Olson said. "I told the kids in the locker room, 'We can't go to a state tournament with just six kids producing.'
"We needed to go all the way down the bench, and we gave them a shot tonight, and some of them did a pretty decent job."
Whitefish's starters weren't too shabby either. Olson, who took Whitefish's helm last season, said he couldn't remember seeing two Lady Bulldogs score 20 points apiece as Ferda and Klundt did on Thursday,
"Those two worked really hard for their points, too," Olson said. "You see Kate: Every loose ball, every rebound, she's battling.
"A few times, I looked down and the only girl she was battling underneath was Ormsby. They kind of get in each other's way because they both want the ball so bad. That's a good problem to have."
Ronan 7 12 11 9 - 39
Whitefish 16 10 12 21 - 59
RONAN (3-10, 0-6) - Kaylee Larson 5 1-3 11, Jordan Strozzi 2 0-0 4, Carli Starkel 3 3-6 10, Ishan Wylie 5 2-6 12, Allison Crenshaw 1 0-0 2, Ali Anderson 0 0-1 0. Totals 16 6-16 39.
WHITEFISH (7-5, 5-1) - Kate Klundt 9 0-3 20, Ashley Ferda 5 9-10 20, Heather Melcer 0 1-2 1, Desiree Clarke 2 1-2 5, Dana Labuda 2 0-0 4, McCara Cullen 1 0-0 2, Amanda Ormsby 2 3-6 7. Totals 21 14-23 59.
3-point goals - Ron. 1 (Starkel), WF 3 (Klundt 2, Ferda). Team fouls - Ron. 19, WF 16. Fouled out - none.