Falcons end regular season on high note
By Nathaniel Underwood
The Abbotsford girls basketball team closed out their 2024-25 regular season campaign with a pair of home victories, defeating Thorp and Chequamegon in their final two contests before the WIAA playoffs.
Chequamegon, 44-42
Celia Schindler had 12 points, Riley Podevels added 10 points and sank the go ahead free throw with less than a second on the clock and the Falcons defeated the Chequamegon Screaming Eagles 44-42 in their last home game of the season.
After finding themselves in a five-point deficit at halftime, Abbotsford came out with a strong defensive effort to start the second period. They held their Marawood-North rivals scoreless for the first six-and-a-half minutes of the half, allowing them to score 12 unanswered points.
A pair of threes from Schindler and a layup courtesy of Azul Diaz got the Falcons started on offense. Jackie Soto added another basket and Podevels capped off the 12-0 run with a basket of her own.
The Screaming Eagles weren’t finished yet, however, and outscored Abbotsford 15-3 over the next few minutes, giving themselves a 40-35 advantage with three minutes remaining. Free throws from Schindler and Marilyn Hammock allowed the Falcons to inch closer and Hammock was able to tie the game at 41-41 with a basket in transition. Chequamegon was the first to break the tie with a free throw, but would leave the door open by going 1-for-4 from the charity stripe in the final minute. Abbotsford took advantage, Podevels tying the game with a free throw before, on the Falcons’ final possession, driving towards the basket and drawing a foul with six-tenths of a second left on the clock. The sophomore made two clutch free throws, sealing Abbotsford’s sixth win of the season.
“What a great team effort and win,” head coach Larry Lecheler said after the game. “Because our opponents were knocking down the three-pointers early, we had to make adjustments at halftime by trying to deny them the ball beyond the arc. And while our guards were chasing theirs all around the outside, our post players did an excellent job of locking up their inside game. Because we had struggled with our inside D the previous week, we worked to improve that part of our team defense this week in practice, and the girls did a great job of applying what they had been working on.”
On top of the 12 points from Schindler and 10 from Podevels, Hammock had seven, Soto finished with six and Diaz had four. Campbell Brodhagen also had three points and Nevaeh Treankler added two.
Thorp, 59-53
Four Falcons scored in the double-digits as Abbotsford held off a rally from the Thorp Cardinals to defeat them 5953 at home.
Nevaeh Treankler scored 10 of her 11 points in the first half and helped the Falcons take an early advantage over the Cardinals. She and Celia Schindler combined to score 10 of Abbotsford’s first 12 points as the Falcons jumped out to a 12-5 lead.
Thorp cut that lead down to one at 20-19, but four free throws and a three from Campbell Brodhagen allowed the Falcons to score seven unanswered points and take an eight point lead. While they’d see that gap tighten before halftime, a hot start to the second period would prove critical to Abbotsford’s eventual victory.
Leading 28-25 to start the second, the Falcons went on a 12-2 run over the first six minutes of the half. Schindler and Riley Podevels scored the first 10 points of the period for the Falcons and a basket for Marilyn Hammock capped off the streak and gave the Falcons a 13-point advantage. The trio of Schindler, Podevels and Hammock carried Abbotsford offensively for the rest of the half, scoring all but one of the Falcons’ points in the final 18 minutes of the contest.
Despite the significant deficit they found themselves in, Thorp had yet to be deterred. The Cardinals went on their own 13-1 run not long after, drawing themselves within one point of the Falcons. A three from Hammock temporarily staved off the visitors’ rally and seemingly revitalized Abbotsford’s offensive efforts in the final six minutes of the game. Abbotsford was able to break through Thorp’s full court press several times to get Hammock quick points under the basket, allowing them to stay ahead for good.
“After seeing Thorp battle back from a double-digit deficit in the second half to get within one, our players were able to stay aggressive themselves offensively which resulted in our highest point output this season and the victory,” Lecheler said.
“After three tough games during the previous week, it felt great to finish out the regular season playing a little better team ball, which always results in positive feelings all around,” he added. “Our girls have competed in seven games this season that were decided by single digits, and to their credit, they have found ways to come out victorious in six of them. As a coaching staff, we believe this could be attributed to the players having improved in their ability to focus on the basketball fundamentals needed down the stretch to help our team come out ahead on the scoreboard.”
Schindler ended the game with a team-high 16 points, Hammock added another 15 points and Treankler had 11. Podevels picked up eight of her 10 points in the second half, Brodhagen and Azul Diaz both finished with three points each and Lauryn Harris had one point.
PASSING OUT OF TROUBLE - Riley Podevels finds an open teammate after drawing three defenders.
STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD
GOING BASELINE - Jackie Soto scores two of her six points against the Screaming Eagles last Thursday. STAFF PHOTO/NATHANIEL UNDERWOOD
