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AMBOY – Throughout her 4-year high school career, Cassidy Koning had seen enough of Amboy’s dominance of her AFC Raiders.
Looking for something that would put momentum on her team’s side, the Raiders senior found that opportunity while snatching up a loose ball with a handful of seconds left in the first half.
Koning’s steal-and-drive put AFC up by double-digits at halftime, and the lead stayed intact in a 44-29 win over the Clippers in the final pool play game of the Amboy Holiday Tournament.
The win is the Raiders’ first in recent memory against their Lee County rival, and while that accomplishment is grand in itself, a chance at the program’s first Christmas tournament championship awaits Thursday against fellow unbeaten Indian Creek (12-0). The Timberwolves await the Raiders (12-0) for a 2:30 championship tipoff.
“It was more of a momentum-changer,” Koning said. “It was kind of saying, ‘You know, this is our game, and we’re here to play.’ We’re not about to let them back in the game. We worked too hard, and have worked all season for this.
“It’s our time to shine.”
With the Clippers placing an emphasis on getting the ball in the middle to counter against AFC’s length, the Raiders stopped that game plan. Koning led the Raiders with four of her team’s 11 steals, and the increased tenacity of the guard play was motivation for Madeline Prestegaard to clamp down in the post.
Prestegaard had back-to-back putbacks to buoy the Raiders’ lead from six points back to 10 early in the final quarter, after the Clippers made finding open shots tough in the previous period. The Raiders made just one shot – a Lexi Meurer 3-pointer – out of eight attempts in the third.
“We just kind of realized that this was going to be the first time our girls have beaten Amboy,” Madeline Prestegaard said. “We really just came out and put it to them. We stepped up our defense, and when our defense is going good, it gets us motivated for offense.”
The Clippers (12-3) missed their first six shots of the game, and the six-point deficit in the fourth quarter was as close as they got to a chance at defending last year’s tournament championship.
Delaney Wilhelm led the Clippers with 13 rebounds to go with seven points, and Karlee Doege led with 12 points. Making just 10 of 41 field goal attempts and committing 12 turnovers were unsual numbers for the Clippers, who take on Marquette at 1 p.m. today for third place.
“We were definitely the smaller team,” Amboy coach Mike McCracken said. “We worked hard and did a pretty good job at denying the ball for the most part, but we shot so poorly.”
Both AFC and Indian Creek are off to the best starts in their respective program histories, and are looking to finish off 2015 without a blemish on their record.
“We’ve just got to play hard and focus on the real prize,” Koning said. “Being able to pass this game to get to tomorrow’s game, now that we’re there, it’s time to make it count.”
Girls basketball
Amboy tournament
AFC 44, Amboy 29
Star of the game: Madeline Prestegaard, AFC, 10 points, 7 rebounds
Key performers: Jaymee Prestegaard, AFC, 14 points; Cassidy Koening, AFC, 4 steals, 4 assists, 4 points; Delaney Wilhelm, Amboy, 7 points, 8 offensive rebounds; Karlee Doege, Amboy, 12 points, 7 rebounds
Up next: Amboy Holiday Tournament, Amboy vs. Marquette (third place), 1 p.m. today; AFC vs. Indian Creek (championship), 2:30 p.m. today