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Delavan-Darien girls hold off Waterford, grab Lakes lead

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

Delavan-Darien's Courtney Flood and Hannah Brown (43) put the squeeze on Waterford's Courtney Ramczyk on Thursday.

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

Delavan-Darien's Alana Cesarz puts up a shot over Waterford's Alyssa Baker on Thursday.

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

Delavan-Darien's Courtney Flood takes a shot under pressure from Waterford's Jordan Bohlman on Thursday.

DELAVAN — Hannah Brown certainly wasn’t going to let a little physical play bother her when Delavan-Darien High School’s girls basketball team needed her the most.

Leading scorer Alana Cesarz and second-leading scorer Courtney Flood were held well below their season averages in a knock-’em-down, drag-’em-out battle with Waterford here Thursday night. So Brown, a reserve senior forward, came through to lead the Comets to a 47-43 win with first place in the Southern Lakes Conference on the line.

The victory lifted defending champion Delavan-Darien to 12-1 for the season and gave the Comets a half-game edge over Waterford (8-3, 5-1) at 6-1 in the conference.

While not pretty from an offensive standpoint, this game was a true peach for those who enjoy in-your-jersey defense and physical play on the glass. And it was Brown who led Delavan-Darien with 12 points, all from the paint, and nine rebounds.

“It was rough, but little bumps and bruises never bothered me,” Brown said of the game’s physical nature.

And with their sixth straight Southern Lakes win, the Comets soared to the top of the conference for the first time this season.

“We lost our first conference game, so for us to rattle off six in a row in this conference against some pretty good competition, that’s pretty big,” Delavan-Darien coach Keiya Square said. “But we have a long way to go.”

Cesarz, who missed a nonconference win over Evansville due to illness on Monday, entered Thursday averaging 18.7 points. She was held to just six points, but did grab 10 rebounds, while Flood was limited to seven points after averaging 15.

So that left others to pick up the slack, and Brown led the way admirably.

“I just went with the teamwork,” she said. “It was just the extra pass, and I just happened to be the one who got the ball.”

Sophomore guard Emily Norris also had a strong game with seven points and six assists for the Comets, while senior guard Karli Collins made three big free throws in the final minute.

“Courtney and Alana didn’t have their best games, but we had people step up,” said Square, who employed a match-up zone defense that effectively clogged the inside and held Waterford’s three-point shooters to just 4 of 18 (22 percent) from beyond the arc.

“We did just enough to come out with the win,” Square said.

Attacking Waterford’s zone expertly, the Comets sizzled in the first quarter on their way to an 18-11 lead and never looked back. The lead remained comfortable early into the fourth quarter when Marissa Moehling hit a three-pointer from the right corner that gave Delavan-Darien a 36-26 lead.

The Wolverines chipped away, however, getting within 40-37 and 42-39 on a pair of baskets by Alexandra Santaga, who led all scorers with 15 points.

After Collins hit a pair of free throws, Jordan Bohlman’s layup for Waterford cut it to 44-41 with 44.5 seconds left. But the Wolverines turned it over on their next three possessions, and Delavan-Darien avoided its fourth overtime game of the season by putting it away at the free-throw line.

DELAVAN-DARIEN 47, WATERFORD 43

Waterford (43)—Baker, 2-2-8; Santaga, 6-3-15; Rank, 2-0-4; Ramczyk, 1-0-2; Eckhardt, 0-1-1; Bohlman, 2-0-5; Hribar, 2-1-5; Carriveau, 1-0-3. Totals: 16-7-43.

Delavan-Darien (47)—Collins, 1-5-7; Cesarz, 3-0-6; Norris, 1-4-7; Brown, 6-0-12; Flood, 3-0-7; Epping, 1-1-3; Moehling, 1-0-3. Totals: 17-10-47.

Waterford 11 6 9 17—43

Delavan-Darien 18 6 9 14—47

Three-point goals—Waterford 4 (Baker 2, Bohlman, Carriveau), Delavan-Darien 3 (Norris, Flood, Moehling). Free throws missed—Waterford 7, Delavan-Darien 10. Total fouls—Waterford 16, Delavan-Darien 12. Fouled out—None.

Junior varsity—Waterford 43, Delavan-Darien 40.