MEDFORD 61, TRI-CITY UNITED 35
In November Medford finished second in the state volleyball
tournament. Three of the all tournament players make up three of the starters for the Tigers now. All three were in double figures with Kiley Nihart and Emma Kniefel sharing game high honors with 16 each (Kinsey Cronin added 10). Medford is young. Only one senior is on the roster. Success in the fall has translated into success in the winter. The Tigers are one of the few undefeated teams left in AA and they showed why in a 61-35 larger than expected win over Tri-City United at home Monday night. The Tigers won the section 2AA match up with a solid 2/3 zone defense foiling any attempt by TCU to get the ball inside to their 6-1 post Maggie Trnka.
Medford scored the first six points and held TCU scoreless their first six possessions. Halfway through the first half TCU did cut the margin to 15-13. That was going to be as close as it was going to get. Medford outscored the Titans 18-7 the next nine minutes to lead 33-20 at the break.
You don’t have to look any further than the shooting percentages. Once again defense led to turnovers which led to lay up drills. Medford overwhelmed TCU with 10 transition baskets on 15 attempts. The Titans had one attempt that did not drop. This helps explain the 62.5% to 38.7% shooting.
TCU from the north half of 2AA, now 8-4 on the year, had just beat Jordan in MN River Conference action on Friday. This was the Titans lowest point total on offense this year. Medford, the leader of the southern end of 2AA, is unblemished at 10-0.
This was my first time in the new Medford school. Back when I was the Ellsworth, MN boys coach my buddy was an assistant coach at Medford and we stopped there to scrimmage on the way back from a Gopher basketball trip.
Tri-City United is made up of Montgomery, Lonsdale and LeCenter.
| MEDFORD | TRI-CITY UNITED | |
| POINTS | 61 | 35 |
| REBOUNDS/OFF | 36/12 | 34/14 |
| TURNOVERS | 20 | 26 |
| FTA/% | 14/35.71 | 6/33.33 |
| 2FG%/3FG% | 62.50/14.28 | 38.70/13.04 |
| PP100 | 87.1 | 50.7 |
| TOP SCORER | Two with 16 | Two with 8 |
TRENCH PLAYER: Emma Kniefel with 16 points, 114.3 pp100, and 29 in the 31 Club. She also had 18 set up passes.