Photo courtesy of Joe Brown/West Central Tribune: Marshall junior Taleigha Bigler, left, makes a crossover dribble while being guarded by Willmar's Kendall Hanson during a non-conference game on Monday, Nov. 25, 2024 at the Big Red Gym in Willmar.

WILLMAR –In its last game before having a week off for Thanksgiving, the Marshall girls basketball team showed off its offensive firepower with a 77-50 road win over Willmar to start the season 2-0.

Taleigha Bigler served as the focal point of the Marshall offense in the game, finishing with 21 points on 8 of 16 shooting as well as seven assists. her three offensive rebounds also tied Paige Gillingham for a team-high and her seven total rebounds trailed only Avery Schneekloth’s eight.

Reese Drake also had a big scoring night with 18 points on 8 of 18 shooting while Gillingham and Ali Pederson each chipped in another 8.

Schneekloth had Marshall’s lone block of the night and tied Bigler with a game-high two steals.

Brielle Ogdahl and Telilie Lange led Willmar with 10 points apiece. Ogdahl shot 2 of 6 from the field while Lange shot 3 of 17. Ogdahl’s six rebounds were also a team-high while Lange’s four steals tied Maddison Molacek for a team-high.

The Marshall Tigers, now 2-0, will have over a week off before they go on the road to take on New Ulm (0-1) on Tuesday, Dec. 3 at 7:30 p.m.

Lakeview 60, HLOF 22

OKABENA — Anah Schmidt scored a game-high 17 points for the Lakeview girls basketball team on Monday night as the Lakers started their season with a dominant 60-22 road win over Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda.

Schmidt was efficient with her shots, going 8 of 16 from the field. She also grabbed eight offensive and eight defensive rebounds in the game to lead the Lakers on the glass.

Aubreigh Rausch helped space the floor with a team-high two 3-pointers for 10 points in the game while Aleiah Rosenau added another 7 points with one 3-pointer.

Brook Gunlogson dished out four assists in the game while Savanna Louwagie and Rosenau added another three each.

On the defensive end, Louwagie also snagged six steals. Brynn Stensrud and Jovie Benson each finished with another four while Megan Schwartz came away with three.

Lakeview improves to 1-0 on the season with the win and will next go on the road to take on Renville County West (1-0) on Tuesday, Dec. 3 at 7:30 p.m.

SATURDAY’S GAMES

WWG 67, Wabasso 28

WABASSO — The Westbrook-Walnut Grove girls basketball team bounced back from a tough to MACCRAY in its season opener with a resounding win over Wabasso on Saturday in the second day of the Wabasso Tip-Off Classic. After being held to 33 points a day earlier, the Chargers’ offense erupted for a 67-28 win behind the play of Leah Carter and Riley Parker.

Parker and Carter each had 12 points at halftime, leading the Chargers to a 43-15 lead at the break. Parker’s points primarily came from the field while Carter consistently worked her way to the free-throw line, where she knocked down eight of her nine attempts. 

Carter went on to finish with a game-high 18 points while Parker added another 14. 

For Wabasso, senior Anistasia Smith and freshman Ava Samyn led the team with 8 points each, with Samyn shooting 3 of 5 from the field with a pair of free throws and Smith shooting 4 of 6 from the field.

Smith also led the Rabbits on the boards with six rebounds while Leah Mathiowetz contributed another five. Sara Carlson also logged four rebounds and a pair of steals.

Westbrook-Walnut Grove (1-1) will host Heron Lake-Okabena/Fulda (2-0) for its home opener in Westbrook tonight at 7:30 p.m. Wabasso (0-2) will look to turn its luck around when it hosts Tracy-Milroy-Balaton at the same time for the Panthers’ season debut.

MACCRAY 49, MCC 39

WABASSO — The Murray County Central girls basketball team dropped the second of its two matches at the Wabasso Tip-Off Classic against MACCRAY on Saturday. After falling 52-47 to Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop a day earlier, the Rebels lost 49-39 to the Wolverines.

Ava Deacon led the Rebels with 13 points on 5 of 11 shooting, as well as a 3-pointer. Kelli Miller and Taylor Larson each also contributed 6 points on two 3-pointers each.

MACCRAY finished the game with a 31-23 rebounding advantage. Miller and Thea Schneider each grabbed five rebounds in the game, including two on the offensive glass for Schneider, while Deacon recorded four defensive rebounds.

Kate Blankenship led the passing efforts with four assists.

MCC (0-2) will look to earn its first win of the season when it travels to Lamberton to take on Red Rock Central (0-1) tonight at 7:30 p.m.