Nice second half lifts Washington girls to win

CEDAR RAPIDS - Their depth and full-court pressure finally wore the opponent down.

This won't go down as the prettiest win the Cedar Rapids Washington Warriors have had this girls' basketball season, but a strong second half was enough to knock off Cedar Rapids Prairie, 43-34, Tuesday night at Washington.

'In the locker room at halftime, we just kind of challenged them to bring some energy, and I think we did,” said Wash Coach Frank Howell. 'That provided a little spark and some excitement. And we finally hit some shots.”

Prairie (4-16) scored the first eight points and held a 12-5 lead after a quarter. Washington (12-8) cut its deficit to 16-15 by halftime, which had to feel like a victory.

Anne Visser hit a pair of big 3-pointers, and Allie Semrau added another to help Washington grab its first lead of the game and then keep it. Visser finished with 9 points, two fewer than Kandis O'Donnell's team-leading 11.

'I really think we were tired. We didn't play the best at the beginning,” Visser said. 'But once we got started, we got into it and played together.”

Olivia Usher had 11 points to lead Prairie, with Lauren Kuch adding 10 off the bench. The Hawks shot just 25 percent from the field and did not make a 3-pointer.

Washington shot just 26 percent.

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AT C.R. WASHINGTON

C.R. PRAIRIE (34): Emilie Rotter 1-4 1-2 3, Olivia Usher 3-9 5-10 11, Halie Person 2-8 2-2 6, Taylor Moenk 1-5 1-2 3, Lynsey Altenhofen 0-3 1-2 1, Makenzie Stoffer 0-2 0-0 0, Lauren Kuch 2-5 6-7 10, Madalynn Adams 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 9-36 15-25 34.

C.R. WASHINGTON (43): Courtney Squires 1-6 0-0 2, Kandis O'Donnell 3-10 5-6 11, Anne Visser 2-8 3-4 9, Allie Semrau 1-3 0-1 3, Joniqua Clark 2-8 2-2 6, Jessi Puk 1-7 1-2 3, Payton Bruner 0-0 2-2 2, Lily Hartman 0-0 0-0 0, Brittany Cullen 0-0 0-0 0, Daris Corey 0-1 0-0 0, Emily Oler 0-0 1-2 1, Brittany Hoeger 0-0 0-0 0, Alanna Arrington 0-0 0-2 0, Jayla Johnson 2-3 2-3 6. Totals 12-46 16-24 43.

Halftime - Prairie 16, Washington 15. 3-point goals - Prairie 0-4 (Usher 0-1, Person 0-1, Moenk 0-1, Altenhofen 0-1), Washington 3-15 (Squires 0-2, O'Donnell 0-1, Visser 2-4, Semrau 1-3, Clark 0-2, Puk 0-2, Johnson 0-1). Rebounds - Prairie 35 (Rotter, Person 8), Washington 29 (O'Donnell, Visser 7). Total fouls - Prairie 14, Washington 19. Fouled out - None. Turnovers - Prairie 25, Washington 16.

l Comments: (319) 398-8259; jeff.johnson@thegazette.com