Hornets led by host of seniors in 2024-25
By Nathaniel Underwood
The Colby Hornets girls basketball team has started the 2024-25 season with a winning record in their first week of play, going 2-1 over their first three contests. While they fell in their opener against Bloomer 64-35, the Hornets bounced back for a 39-30 road win at Thorp and a 42-27 victory in their home opener against Abbotsford.
The Hornets bring plenty of varsity experience to the table this season as they look to improve upon their 4-19 record last year. While they got off to a 3-3 start last season, injuries plagued Colby throughout the season and they were only able to pick up one more win over the course of the campaign. There were numerous close games across the Cloverbelt schedule, but the Hornets unfortunately found themselves on the wrong side of those final scores.
However, with much of that squad returning for this season, the Hornets are looking to come out on top in more of those closely contested games.
Senior All-Conference honorable mention Alexis Vanderhoof returns, as does senior Angelique Hernandez. The pair led the team on offense last season and will continue to be the Hornets’ primary threats from the outside. Seniors Lilly Brzezinski and Harrison Schmitt are also back with a plethora of varsity experience, with the former providing a presence in the paint for Colby and the latter giving some versatility on offense and defense. Senior Lucia Perez also saw significant varsity minutes last season and will once again slot in at guard for the Hornets.
Juniors Brynn Polivka will provide another option for the Hornets from beyond the arc and junior Alia Hamus and sophomore Elizabeth Perez will be back after picking up varsity minutes last season.
The experience together will be one of the team’s key assets this season according to head coach Terry Schmitt.
“They all saw playing time on varsity last year,” Schmitt said of this year’s squad. “They all played summer together, we did a team camp in Stevens Point together. Having a senior-led group, we haven’t had that for awhile and you can already see the difference in the leadership. The familiarity with everyone allows us to just keep building on what we were doing last year.”
“Some of these girls have been playing at least three years, if not four years, on varsity and that time has made them stronger, but they’re totally different this year,” he added.
Leaning on that chemistry and staying healthy will be key for the Hornets as they look to improve upon their one conference win from last season.
“When we were healthy, we were a different team last year,” Schmitt said. “We were healthy two or three times during the season last year and we were a whole different team out there, but when everyone is sick and injured, it didn’t go as well.”
As they did last season, the Hornets will likely still shoot the ball from outside the arc often, but they are hoping to add some additional layers to their offense. Finding ways to produce points in the paint, or at least push the ball there to open up more opportunities for their shooters, will be a focus for this year’s team heading into the season.
Cutting back on turnovers will also be important for a team that had too many possessions end without a shot last year.
“We’ve got to limit the turnovers. They killed us last year,” Schmitt said. “We’ve been trying to stress limiting them and getting quality possessions every time [down the court]. Whether it's a quick position or a slow possession, we’ve got to take care of the ball.”
It was an aspect of the game that certainly had an effect in the Hornets’ first two games of the season. While they were able to overcome their 32 turnovers by forcing 32 of their own against Thorp, their 33 turnovers led to 33 points for Bloomer, over half of their final total.
While a three from Schmitt and a basket from Brzezinski were able to bring the Hornets back within four in the early minutes of their opener against the Blackhawks, it was tough to find much flow on offense for the Hornets in the middle portion of the half. The home team outscored Colby 20-2 for a stretch following Brzezinski’s basket, giving them a 31-9 advantage.
The Hornets were able to bring themselves back into the game by going on an 11-0 run themselves. Hernandez scored six of the visitors’ points on the run, helping to bring Colby back within one possession of single digits.
The Blackhawks were able to run their lead back out to 15 by halftime, however, and while a three from Hernandez cut that lead down to 14 as the two teams traded baskets in the opening possessions of the second half, the visiting Hornets were not able to keep pace as the night wore on. Following Hernandez’s bucket, Bloomer scored 11 straight points and went on a 23-2 run over the next 13 minutes.
Colby’s sole field goal over that span came on a mid-range jumper from Vanderhoof with seven minutes left in the contest. The Hornets were finally able to get back on the See COLBY BASKETBALL/ Page 13
2024-25 COLBY GIRLS BASKETBALL TEAM - This year’s 2024-25 Colby girls basketball team is, in the back row, left to right, Harrison Schmitt, Lilly Brzezinski, Brynn Polivka and Angelique Hernandez. In the front row, left to right, are Alia Hamus, Elizabeth Perez, Lucia Perez and Alexis Vanderhoof. The Hornets are coached by Terry Schmitt.
STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD
on Monday night as the Hornets hosted Abbotsford for a non-conference matchup.
BOX OUT - Lilly Brzezinski, left, and Azalea Atkinson, right, battle for a rebound
STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD Colby basketball
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board after a steal from Hernandez was turned into points on a layup by Schmitt. Colby was able to score seven points in the final two minutes of the contest, but the lack of offense for much of the half rendered the final scoring spree moot.
While the Hornets managed to accomplish one of their goals by holding their own in the paint, getting 20 of their 35 points there and collecting the same amount of defensive rebounds as Bloomer, their lack of consistency from beyond the three point line, where they shot 3-for-21, and the amount of turnovers allowed the Blackhawks to run away with the game. Hernandez led the team with 13 points, Schmitt had seven points and Brzezinski collected six points. Elizabeth Perez had a team-high eight rebounds and five assists in the contest.
Thorp, 39-30
Colby was able to bounce back in their second game of the season, downing the Thorp Cardinals on the road, 39-30. The Hornets used a 12-0 start to take control of the contest, never trailing against their Cloverbelt-West foes.
Vanderhoof got the visiting Colby squad on the board with a floater in the lane on their first possession and the Hornets scored on five of their first seven possessions. While Colby had two turnovers during that stretch, they were able to come up with four steals themselves, allowing the Cardinals just two shots. Schmitt capped the run with a three-point shot off an offensive rebound by Hernandez.
Thorp rattled off six straight points of their own, cutting the Hornet lead down to six, but that was all the closer the Cardinals would get in the half. A basket from Polivka ended the home team’s run and Colby outscored their opponents 10-2 over the next five minutes to solidify their hold over the contest. They entered halftime with a 24-12 advantage and a three from Hernandez on the Hornets’ first possession of the second half gave them their largest lead in the game.
While the Cardinals were able to whittle away at that lead, once again getting back within six points with three minutes left to play, the Hornets slammed the door shut. Schmitt found room to operate in the paint and delivered a clutch basket to bring the lead back out to 35-27 and Brzezinski put the team up by 10 with a minute and a half to play on another layup.
The Hornets were able to turn 24 offensive rebounds into 12 second chance points and were able to collect 23 points off of 32 turnovers by Thorp. Colby had an impressive 20 steals in the victory, led by Elizabeth Perez who had seven and Polivka who finished with four.
Schmitt led the team in scoring with 11 points, Hernandez added nine and Vanderhoof finished with seven. Hernandez and Brezinski both had eight rebounds each and Polivka and Schmitt came up with seven boards in the win. Hernandez had the most assists with four.
Abbotsford, 47-27
The Falcons also took on the Colby Hornets on Monday evening, falling 47-27 to their neighbors to the south. While a mid game push by Abbotsford made things interesting, the Hornets were able to pull away late to deal the Falcons their second loss.
Colby was able to jump out to a 6-0 lead thanks to a pair of threes from Schmitt on consecutive possessions. A defensive tug-of-war ensued, with neither team managing to find any room to operate on offense. By the midway point of the first period, only 12 total points had been scored between the two squads, with the Hornets holding on to an 8-4 advantage.
Vanderhoof took over the offensive production for Colby as the clock pushed towards halftime. The senior guard scored nine straight points for the Hornets as the scoring picked up for both teams. While the home team led by as many as 10 points, the Falcons whittled that lead down to a 20-16 advantage in the final seconds of the period. A basket courtesy of Hernandez in the closing moments allowed the Hornets a bit more breathing room heading into the locker rooms.
However, the Falcons came out with two straight scores to start the second half, cutting Colby’s lead down to a single possession at 22-20. A pair of free throws from Hernandez ended Abbotsford’s short scoring spurt and the Hornets turned up the defensive pressure. They did not allow a point scored for seven minutes, allowing them to go on an 11-0 run to reestablish their lead. A corner three from Schmitt and an excellent pass down low by Vanderhoof to find a wide open Hernandez for a layup helped the Hornets reestablish the momentum that would carry them to victory.
Swarming defense completely stifled the Falcons for much of the second period. The Hornets surrendered just 11 points in the half and only seven over the final 16 minutes. Meanwhile, the Hornets were able to find opportunities inside and in transition, with Hernandez and Brzezinski leading the way on offense with 10 and seven second half points respectively. Colby finished the game on a 25-7 run after Abbotsford had pulled within two points, dominating most of the second period.
Hernandez led the team with 15 points, Schmitt had 11, and Vanderhoof and Brzezinski finished with nine points each. Polivka added a second half three-pointer as well. While the Hornets shot just 28 percent from the free throw line, their six made threes and strong defensive performance carried them through.
GOING BASELINE - Colby’s Angelique Hernandez looks for room to operate while going up against Abby’s Jackie Soto.
STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD
