SPORTS

Adelsperger, Miller lead Old Fort to big win over Genoa

Josh Morgret
Correspondent
Genoa topped Old Fort in a non-league matchup.

OLD FORT - During a hockey game when a team changes its entire lineup, the coach will yell "line change" and all five players change in and out.

It looked like interim Old Fort coach Mike Miller was doing just that during the third quarter on Tuesday against visiting Genoa.

It didn't seem to matter which five players were on the floor for the Stockaders, as each lineup took it to the Comets.

Allison Adelsperger and Peyton Miller combined for 44 points and Sydney Clouse nearly had a double-double, as Old Fort cruised to a 71-39 non-league win over Genoa.

Adelsperger tallied 23 points while Miller scored 21.

"They're both tremendous shooters and we talked about that at halftime," coach Miller said. "We wanted to try to get the ball in their hands so we could get higher percentage shots. It's certainly a luxury to have two guards like that."

The Stockaders (2-0) raced to an 11-0 lead before Genoa (1-3) finally made two free throws. The Comets didn't make their first field goal until Kendall Gerke hit a 3-pointer with 3:13 left in the first quarter.

In the second quarter, a score by Gerke finished off a 10-3 run by Genoa to get within five points but Old Fort kicked up the intensity the rest of the quarter. Adelsperger hit two 3-pointers and Caylie Menkhoff made one, as the Stockaders used a 9-1 run over the final three minutes of the half for a 32-19 lead.

The onslaught by Old Fort continued into the third quarter. Clouse's bucket opened the scoring and after Sasha Roberts scored, Adelsperger drained a 3-pointer and followed it with two free throws. Whitney Bilger made a 3-pointer of her own for a 44-21 lead.

"We knew the second half would be the problem for us," Genoa coach Mike DeStazio said. "We knew we couldn't play with this team for four quarters. There was no way. They have a lot of seniors and we have a lot of young kids. We learned some things tonight and that's a good thing."

Miller scored consecutive buckets to end the quarter for the Stockaders. Genoa committed eight turnovers in the third quarter.

"It was similar to our last game in that we reached a point in the third quarter that the other team seemed to get tired," coach Miller said. "They had a hard time sitting down and doing the fundamentals when we wear them out. I think we kept pushing the pace in the first half. The constant pace and pressure seem to take a toll on teams in the second half."

The Comets committed 24 turnovers total against the Old Fort press and made just 14-of-40 shots. Chayce McQueary led the Comets with 13 points while Tatum Neumann scored 11 points.

"I thought overall we did a nice job with their press," DeStazio said. "We had trouble executing and scoring but if you're going to shoot the ball from the perimeter like they did, it's going to be hard to stop them. They hit some big shots."

The lead reached 30 points after Adelsperger hit a 3-pointer and made a layup on consecutive offensive possessions by the Stockaders.

Clouse, a guard/forward, scored nine points and pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds.

"Our goal every game is to force teams into 20-plus turnovers and usually that turns into transition buckets for us," coach Miller said. "We're really happy with how we've started the season off but we have a lot of things to work on."

Stat book: Genoa (Tatum Neumann 11, Kendall Gerke 8, Emily Edwards 3, Chayce McQueary 13, Sasha Roberts 2, Marissa Young 2); Old Fort (Allison Adelsperger 23, Sydney Clouse 9, Peyton Miller 21, Jordan Magers 2, Caylie Menkhoff 6, Sydney Hossler 1, Whitney Bilger 6, Morgan Miller 3).