Clovers notch fifth win in a row against Shakamak, 63-43

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

CLOVERDALE -- Cloverdale (15-5, 4-1 WCC) continued its current five-game winning streak by downing Shakamak, 63-43 on what was an emotional night for three Clovers in particular.

Junior Elizabeth Cheatham goes up against Shakamak's Sam Crosby during Tuesday's contest. Cheatham scored 28 points in the Clovers' 63-43 thumping of the Lakers.

Seniors Ashley Koosman, Chelsie Haltom and Kristen Schroer took the home court for the final time in their high school career, a moment Schroer worked hard to realize.

"Kristen (Schroer) has really worked hard to come back for us and I felt bad for her, but I couldn't see her turning that ankle," CHS head coach Bruce Cook said after the contest. "It's really tough for her because she feels like she's ready to come back, but she's not ready."

The seniors were presented a ball commemorating their senior season between games and used that emotion to open the game in blistering fashion.

Kristin McCammon started the scoring for the Clovers and baskets from Koosman and Elizabeth Cheatham extended their lead. Cheatham scored eight points in the opening stanza as Cloverdale ended the quarter with a 17-8 lead.

The hot hand Cloverdale had in the first quarter cooled in the second as they scored only seven points. This would be a cause for concern for most, but the Clovers relied on their defense and held the Lakers to just three points.

Offensively, Cloverdale had a balanced attack with Cheatham scoring 10 in the half as Koosman and McCammon followed with seven points each. The Clovers held a 24-11 advantage at the half.

The Clovers shot 8-of-29 in the first half, a fact Cook attributed to an unkind iron instead of anything Shakamak did on the defensive end.

"I thought they did a pretty good job defensively. I didn't feel like we were out of sync, we just couldn't get the (shots) to go," Cook said.

Shakamak came out in the third and knocked the Clovers on their heels as Jessica Gilbert scored on their first four possessions, cutting the lead to seven points.

That was the wake up call the Clovers needed.

Cloverdale went on a tear, shutting down Shakamak's offense while kicking their own into high gear. A three from Kayla Shepherd and six points from Cheatham helped Cloverdale extend its lead to 14 points going into the fourth.

Cook acknowledged after the game that his team's plan was to attack and get the Lakers into foul trouble. A plan his squad worked to perfection.

In the fourth, the Lakers found themselves without the services of Gilbert and Crosby after they both were sent to the bench with five fouls.

"Once we exploited that, I was going to give up the ship," Cook commented.

After the departure of Shakamak's inside presence, Cloverdale began to press the ball inside to Cheatham where she put up 18 points in the second half and 28 for the game. Cloverdale built upon its lead throughout the quarter to walk away with the victory.

Cook continued to praise his three seniors after their last home game. Smiling, Cook turned his focus on two of his seniors and one underclassman, whose performance of late impressed her coach enough to translate into more court time.

"It was an emotional night for Chelsie (Haltom)," Cook said. "I thought it was a big night for her. Boy, she's meant everything to our program. She doesn't score a lot but she runs the floor and takes care of it. She's so smart.

"It was also good night for (Ashley) Koosman -- she's just Koosman. She's natural. Some kids are practice kids and some kids are gamers. Koosman is a gamer, that's just what she does."

"Allie (Franklin) got a few more minutes tonight because of how she played last week. She played really well for us on Friday night. She came in and sparked us. I think she won that game for us. I thought she did a nice job," Cook commented.

In junior varsity action Cloverdale downed the Lakers 25-16.

The Clovers will travel to Speedway at 6 p.m. Friday in a contest that will determine the West Central Conference championship.

At Cloverdale

Shakamak 8 3 19 13 -- 43

Cloverdale 17 7 20 19 -- 63

Shakamak -- Gilbert 10 1-3 21, Collins 4 1-2 9, Pearson 2 1-1 5, Fougerousse 1 1-2 4, Kurtz 2 0-0 4. Total: 19-47 FG 4-8 FT 43 TP.

Cloverdale -- Cheatham 12 4-7 28, McCammon 3 4-5 12, Koosman 3 6-8 12, Shepherd 2 2-4 7, Franklin 1 0-0 2, Haltom 1 0-0 2. Totals: 22-61 FG 16-24 FT 63 TP.

3pt. FG -- Shakamak -- Fougerousse, CHS 3 (McCammon 2, Shepherd).

Total fouls -- Shakamak 16, CHS 9. Fouled out -- Shakamak -- Crosby, Gilbert.

Next game -- The Clovers will travel to Speedway at 6 p.m. Friday in a contest that will determine the West Central Conference championship.

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