Senior guard Alice Heinzler exploded for 25 points as the Republic Lady Tigers cruised to a 68-29 win over Aurora to open their season at the Aurora Tournament. Heinzler had 12 points in the first quarter and 16 before the break. She finished with three 3-pointers.
Baylee Rayl had 11 points, and was the only other Lady Tiger in double figures in scoring. The rest of the scoring was balanced, with every player getting at least a point.
Coach Kris Flood says there’s still plenty for the Lady Tigers to work on, despite the blowout win.
“It was a typical first game for us. Sometimes we looked really good and executed well and other times we struggled to even hang on to the ball. Typical for us this time of year,” Flood says.
Republic drained eight 3-pointers, including three in the first quarter, as they built a 26-6 lead after one. The lead ballooned to 36-14 at halftime.
Sarah Kreul had six points, Alex Botkin added six (on two 3-pointers), Lindsey Carlson and Tori Taylor had four apiece, Micah Mansker and Michayla Shanks each scored three, Katherine Hankins had 2, and Kayla Bartelsmeyer added 1 point for the Lady Tigers.
Republic improves to 1-0, and advances to play Mount Vernon at 7:30 Thursday night.
(Thanks to Rodger Wheeler of Houn’ Dawg Sports for stats and the photo!)