COULEE CITY — Trailing by four entering the fourth quarter, the Almira/Coulee-Hartline girls basketball team was unable to overcome its deficit to Valley Christian on Tuesday night, falling 50-46 to the visiting Panthers.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game,” head coach Nikki Strock said. “We go into every game thinking that – we've got to be tough, we’ve got to work to execute the things that we’ve been practicing.”

It was the second matchup between both teams this season, with ACH winning the previous game 70-43 on Dec. 20. Tuesday’s game was much closer to start, as ACH held a narrow 15-14 lead early in the second quarter. By the end of the second quarter, Valley Christian had taken a 20-19 lead over the Warriors.

Defensive pressure from the Panthers made attacking in the paint a challenge.

“We didn’t execute the type of basketball that we want to play,” Strock said. “The first quarter was frustrating, the whole game was frustrating.”

ACH retook the lead in the third quarter when a transition layup from junior Emma Brummett put the Warriors up 32-31, but Valley Christian took the lead back and built a four-point advantage on a three-pointer late in the third quarter.

“We were just out of sync tonight, is what it felt like,” Strock said. 

ACH was able to score down the stretch of Tuesday’s matchup, but Valley Christian answered quickly with baskets on the opposite end of the floor. The Panthers held on for a 50-46 win, giving ACH its second league loss of the season (8-5 overall, 6-2 Northeast 1B).

“Valley Christian is a very talented team,” Strock said. “They have girls who once they hit a shot or two, they continue to do so. They get the confidence – a shooter’s mentality, and they want the ball. If they don’t get it, then they’re going to make the next one.”

Junior Naomi Molitor led the Warriors with 15 points, followed by senior Emma Whitaker’s 11 points and freshman Mallory Isaak’s seven points.

The Warriors saw their four-game win streak snapped with Tuesday’s loss; up next on the schedule is a home game against Wilbur-Creston-Keller on Friday at 6 p.m.

“When other teams come to play us, especially at home, they’re going to bring their best,” Strock said. “We can’t walk into a game thinking that’s it’s going to be easy. We have to work our best every single time a team comes and shows up. The teams that we have the rest of the season are going to be tough teams.”

    Almira/Coulee-Hartline junior Peyton Roberts, left, drives toward the rim during a game against the Valley Christian Panthers on Tuesday.
  

    ACH senior Emma Whitaker, left, scored 11 points in Tuesday’s game against Valley Christian.