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By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
MARSHFIELD – The Marshfield Columbus Catholic girls basketball team returns four key contributors from last year, and hopes to build on a season that saw ups and downs, but solid play overall.
The Dons finished 14-10 overall last season and were 7-8 in the Cloverbelt Conference East Division, tying for fifth place in the standings.
Among those returning is second-team all-Cloverbelt East performer Addison Baierl, a senior forward who was on in the Dons’ opening game of the season, scoring 20 points in a victory over Rib Lake on Nov. 19. Baierl averaged 12 points and four rebounds per game a year ago for Columbus.
Also back are senior guard Annika Brown (4.4 points, 2.4 rebounds per game), and juniors Emmalee Jicinsky (3 points, 4.3 rebounds per game) and Meghan Kibbel (2.2 points per game).
Senior Holly Dean, and juniors Kelsey Moore and Erynn Meece will see a larger role this season for the Dons.
“I want to build on the foundation that was established last season and try to get better every day,” second-year head coach Ron Wilczek said. “Each practice, each drill, and each rep is an opportunity to improve. Small improvements each day can add up to a lot and can make a significant difference by the end of the season. I also want the girls to have fun and enjoy the journey and season.”
Outside of Baierl, the Dons will look for others to improve their offensive play and contribute more than in the past. In the meantime, defense will be of the upmost importance.
“Scoring is probably our biggest area of concern this season, so a key to our success will be how well we defend,” Wilczek said. “We need to make it difficult for other teams to score. We can’t give up easy baskets. That said, I think we could be pretty good defensively because we return several girls with good length and athleticism who also have good understanding of our defensive concepts. Another key for us is being able to take good care of the ball and limiting turnovers.”
Marshfield Columbus Catholic Girls Basketball Schedule
Tue., Nov. 19 at Rib Lake, 7:15 p.m.
Tue., Nov. 26 COLBY, 7:15 p.m.
Fri., Nov. 29 at Wisconsin Rapids Assumption, 1:30 p.m.
Sat., Nov. 30 TBA at Wisconsin Rapids Assumption, Noon
Thur., Dec. 5 at Spencer, 7:15 p.m.
Tue., Dec. 10 GRANTON, 7:15 p.m.
Fri., Dec. 13 OWEN-WITHEE, 7:15 p.m.
Sat., Dec. 14 TBA at La Crosse Aquinas, TBA
Thur., Dec. 19 GILMAN, 7:15 p.m.
Fri., Jan. 3 GREENWOOD, 7:15 p.m.
Thur., Jan. 9 LOYAL, 7:15 p.m.
Tue., Jan. 14 at Neillsville, 7:15 p.m.
Fri., Jan. 17 at Colby, 7:15 p.m.
Thur., Jan. 23 SPENCER, 7:15 p.m.
Tue., Jan. 28 at Granton, 7:15 p.m.
Fri., Jan. 31 NORTHLAND LUTHERAN, 7:15 p.m.
Tue., Feb. 4 at Owen-Withee, 7:15 p.m.
Thur., Feb. 6 at Gilman, 7:15 p.m.
Tue., Feb. 11 at Greenwood, 7:15 p.m.
Fri., Feb. 14 at Loyal, 7:15 p.m.
Mon., Feb. 17 NEILLSVILLE, 7:15 p.m.
Feb. 20 or Feb. 22 Cloverbelt Crossover, TBA
Tue., Feb. 25 WIAA Div. 5 regional quarterfinal, 7 p.m.
Home games in CAPS, at Columbus Catholic High School