By John RittenhouseThe Ellsworth girls’ basketball team ran its record to 8-6 after winning three straight games since last Thursday.The Panthers nipped Lakeview by one point in Ellsworth Thursday before edging Remsen (Iowa) St. Mary’s by two points in Ellsworth Saturday. EHS recorded its third straight victory by besting Canby by 10 points in Canby Tuesday.Ellsworth, 5-4 in the Camden Conference, hosts Dawson-Boyd tonight before playing road games against George-Little Rock Monday and Lake Benton Tuesday.Ellsworth 59, Canby 49A second-half rally gave the Panthers a 10-point win in Canby Tuesday.After trailing 10-9 and 26-23 at the first two quarter breaks, Ellsworth battled back to outscore the Lancers 36-23 in the second half to post its third straight win."We decided to play some good basketball in the last quarter and one-half," said Panther coach Dean Schnaible. "Our field goal shooting, getting a lot more opportunities at the free-throw line and our man-to-man, full-court pressure were the differences in the game."Ellsworth began its rally in the third quarter, when it moved in front 41-39 by period’s end. EHS outscored the Lancers 18-10 in the fourth quarter to put the game away.Laurel Drenth scored 15 points and passed for four assists for EHS. Brittney Kramer added 15 points to the cause, and Marla Groen chipped in 12 points and three assists. Amy Tiesler led the Panthers with eight rebounds. Amy Timmer and Rachel Kvaale charted three steals each.Box scoreTiesler 1 0 1-5 3, Leuthold 0 0 0-0 0, Kvaale 2 0 2-2 6, Ly.Drenth 0 0 0-0 0, Lr.Drenth 4 0 7-8 15, Groen 2 1 5-8 12, Kramer 6 0 3-6 15, Timmer 2 0 4-6 8.Team statisticsEllsworth: 18 of 38 field goals (47 percent), 22 of 35 free throws (63 percent), 25 rebounds, 23 turnovers.Canby: 20 of 62 field goals (32 percent), six of 10 free throws (60 percent), 30 rebounds, 17 turnovers.Ellsworth 49, RSM 47A late field goal by Laurel Drenth gave the Panthers a two-point home victory over Remsen St. Mary’s Saturday.Ellsworth played right with the talented team from Iowa and won the contest with Drenth’s decisive shot.The score was tied at 47 with 48 seconds left to play, and the Panthers opted to go for the last shot at that point. The ball ended up in Drenth’s hands in the high post, and she drove to the basket before turning a layup into the game-winning points with 2.2 seconds remaining. EHS intercepted RSM’s ensuing in-bounds pass to ice the win."Our girls played quite well," said Panther coach Schnaible. "It was a great team-effort. RSM has a very big, quick and good team. This was a nice win for the girls."Ellsworth led 11-9 after eight minutes of play before facing 24-21 and 35-33 deficits at the second and third quarter breaks.Drenth’s game-winning hoop capped a 23-point, six-assist performance. Kramer added 11 points and eight rebounds to the winning cause. Tiesler charted six rebounds and four steals. Groen passed for four assists.Box scoreTiesler 2 0 2-2 6, Leuthold 0 0 0-0 0, Kvaale 1 0 2-2 4, Ly.Drenth 0 0 0-0 0, Lr.Drenth 8 0 7-7 23, Groen 0 1 0-2 3, Kramer 5 0 1-3 11, Timmer 1 0 0-0 2.Team statisticsEllsworth: 18 of 45 field goals (40 percent), 12 of 16 free throws (75 percent), 28 rebounds, 17 turnovers.RSM: 15 of 46 field goals (33 percent), 14 of 22 free throws (64 percent), 19 rebounds, 16 turnovers.Ellsworth 41,Lakeview 40Clutch free-throw shooting down the stretch by Laurel Drenth helped the Panthers snap a two-game slide Thursday in Ellsworth.Drenth, who produced a double-double in the game by scoring 16 points and collecting 10 rebounds, drained four free throws in the final minute to clinch the victory for EHS.Drenth’s final two free throws gave the Panthers a 41-38 lead that was whittled down to one point when the Lakers hit a field goal late in the game. A stolen in-bound pass gave Lakeview an opportunity to win the game, but a last-second shot from six feet away was off the mark."This was a confidence-builder for us," said Panther coach Schnaible, who noted that EHS snapped a string of 20-plus turnover games against the Lakers. "We came into the game with two losses in a row and three poor performances. The 18 turnovers we had were much improved over the last three outings."Ellsworth, which led 12-10 after eight minutes of play only to fall behind by two points (24-22 and 35-33) at the next two quarter breaks, received an 11-rebound, three-steal effort from Kramer. Tiesler grabbed eight rebounds in her second varsity start. Groen charted four assists and two deflections in the game.Box scoreTiesler 2 1 0-0 7, Leuthold 1 0-0 2, Kvaale 0 0 0-0 0, Ly.Drenth 0 0 0-0 0, Lr.Drenth 5 0 6-7 16, Groen 3 0 0-0 6, Kramer 4 0 0-1 8, Timmer 1 0 0-0 2.Team statisticsEllsworth: 17 of 55 field goals (31 percent), six of eight free throws (75 percent), 38 rebounds, 18 turnovers.Lakeview: 17 of 43 field goals (40 percent), five of 16 free throws (31 percent), 25 rebounds, 10 turnovers.
