The Pelican Rapids Vikings jumped out to an early 21-point lead at 28-7, then withstood several runs from the Frazee Lady Hornets and eventually settled for a 66-51 victory Tuesday night in Heart O'Lakes Conference action.
The Vikings (6-3 overall, 4-3 HOL) came out hot, racing to their 21-point lead just 10 minutes into the game. Their offense was triggered by senior Kendra Coleman, who had 13 of her game high 21 points in the first half.
Freshmen Alexis Tappe ignited the Lady Hornets (2-9 overall, 1-6 HOL) off the bench, helping Frazee go on a 12-0 run to cut the lead to nine points. Tappe scored 12 first-half points as Pelican Rapids took a 37-27 halftime lead.
In the second half Frazee made several attempts at chipping into the lead, but the team was never able to overcome the Vikings. The Lady Hornets cut the lead to six points at 43-37, only to see the Vikings score eight straight points to increase the lead back to 14.
Frazee responded again with seven straight points to cut the margin to 51-44. But that would be as close as the Lady Hornets would get, as Pelican Rapids had answers for every run that Frazee made on this night.
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"You have to credit to Pelican Rapids," Frazee head coach Dave Conzemius said. "They took advantage of their early lead and made plays when they had to in order to come out with the win.
"We exerted so much energy to get ourselves back into the game and just were not able to make the plays to get us over the hump tonight."
Following Coleman's game high 21 points for the Vikings was Erika Morgan with 13 points and Anna Skow-Anderson with 12 points.
Tappe led the Lady Hornets with a career-high 19 points and was joined in double figures by freshmen Ashley Bachmann, who had 16 points.
"We have a lot of things that we can improve on from our defense, (such as) rebounding and becoming more consistent," Conzemius added. "The girls will continue to work hard in practice and we will eventually get better."
Frazee faces the top two teams in the HOL in their next two games, as 9-0 Hawley comes to Frazee on Friday night. The Lady Hornets then travel to 8-1 Perham on Monday night.
Lady Hornets drop two in Christmas Tourney
After winning their opening round game at the Walker Christmas tournament, the Frazee Lady Hornets dropped their next two games to finish fourth at the three-day tournament.
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On Tuesday, Dec. 29, the Lady Hornets gave the No. 3 state-ranked Panthers all they could handle in the semifinal contest, before falling off the pace late in the game and losing 59-48.
"I have to give credit to the girls," said Frazee head coach Dave Conzemius. "We really stepped up and met their level of play and made them uncomfortable in what they were doing."
Coming in, Parkers Prairie (7-0) had been averaging 77.4 points per game, led by Gopher signee Sari Noga.
Frazee attempted to slow down Noga by running different defenders at her.
To Noga's credit, she crashed the offensive glass hard and she got many of her game-high 22 points there.
"We just tried to slow her down and to her credit, she found other ways to score," Conzemius said.
"There is a reason she is going to play for the Gophers, and she showed us that she has a complete game."
The first half was close throughout, as the Lady Hornets slowed the pace. The Panthers led at halftime 23-20.
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Frazee tied the game early in the second half and hung close the whole way, until Parkers Prairie held on for the win by controlling the ball down the stretch.
The Lady Hornets received some balanced scoring in the loss. Freshmen Ashley Bachmann led the way with 12 points, sophomore McKinzie Tangen had 10, freshman Alexis Tappe and junior Kristi Smith had nine each and senior Jaclyn Mickelson added eight.
"It was a good game for us as we showed we can play with a top-caliber team," Conzemius added. "Their closest game to date was 37 points, and we made them earn this one today."
Frazee appeared to have little left in the gas tank after two tough games to open the tournament.
The Lady Hornets missed several good looks at the basket in the second half as Sebeka (7-1) slowly pulled away in the second half to win the third place contest in a 50-25 win.
The Trojans led 28-19 at halftime and continued to build on the lead in the second half.
Frazee took good care of the basketball but couldn't get anything to drop on this night.
"We looked like we were fatigued," Conzemius said. "It is tough to play three straight days. Once we started to miss some shots in the second half, we didn't have the energy to overcome a very scrappy and well-coached Sebeka team."
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The Lady Hornets (2-8) were led by Tappe with 12 points, while Smith added eight. Tappe and Tangen were named to the all-tournament team for Frazee.
"I am happy for Alexis and McKinzie making the all-tournament team," Conzemius added. "It is also a reflection on their teammates, as these girls have worked hard to make themselves better basketball players. This was a good tournament for us and will help us as we return to Heart O'Lakes Conference action."
Frazee will host Hawley Friday.
