North Branch falls flat in first loss to CL

For a while, it didn’t look like North Branch Head Coach Dan Schindler was ever going to have to wash his cherry red sweatshirt again. In his yearly tradition, as long as the girls are winning, he doesn’t wash the lucky sweatshirt. But, a familiar foe sent him to the dry cleaners as North Branch fell for the first time this year after starting 9-0. Chisago Lakes jumped out to a big lead and never let North Branch get back into the game on Friday, Jan. 4. The Vikings missed some early shots and Chisago Lakes capitalized on it, jumping out to a 10-0 lead. That ballooned to 15-2 before North Branch could sink another basket. The Vikings eventually settled down, but pesky defense by Hannah Trandahl and Sarah Greene made things next to impossible for North Branch. “After we settled down a bit, we were never able to get anything going offensively,” Schindler said. “We got some good shots but couldn’t make them and Chisago was on fire -- it seemed like they made every shot.” “We’ve played a tough schedule and spoke before the game about playing with confidence, executing and playing with poise in front of this large crowd,” Chisago Lakes Head Coach Craig Walker said after the game.
The Wildcats took a 34-21 lead into halftime, and for a Schindler coach team that preaches ball movement and gritty defense, a 13-point deficit seemed like a 30-point deficit. The Wildcats kept their foot on the pedal as the second half wore on, extending their lead to as much as 22 at one point. “I give Chisago Lakes all the credit, they seemed to have all of the energy tonight,” Schindler said. “We were trying to focus on stopping Bryanna Fernstrom, but it seemed to get us out of our defensive positions too much and Sarah Greene really took advantage of that.” Greene, a sophomore, score a game-high 21 points on the night and grabbed nine rebounds also. “Sarah’s been impressive,” Walker said. “She’s not afraid to mix it up inside and has the skills and instincts to rebound well. The combination of her and Bryanna inside will be fun to see develop. Bry's our focal point and when she's doubled she’s a good passer.”

As the game started to wind down, North Branch began just trying to force things, and that just made it work. “It seemed like we were trying to get all the points back in a few possessions, and that just doesn’t work,” Schindler said. “It just wasn’t a good game for us.” The Wildcats sealed the game midway through the second half, and by the five minute mark, subs were marching in for both teams as NB finished up the 58-44 victory. Fernstrom ended with 13 points and five rebounds and Sam Forslund had 10 points. For the Vikings, Haley Huset was the only girl in double digits with 11 points. Sarah Lekson had eight and Morgen Coleman provided a little spark off the bench in the second half and scored six points. “I am not worried. We will bounce back,” Schindler said.

“We need to learn from this and move on.” North Branch drops their first game and goes to 9-1 on the season with North Sububan Conference tilts against Robbinsdale Cooper and Benilde-St. Maraget’s coming up. Those two teams were co-conference champions last year, so NB has their work cut out for them in the upcoming schedule. The Wildcats, who moved to 7-5 on the year with the win, took on Columbia Heights earlier this week in and NSC game, and will face St. Louis Park on Friday, Jan. 11.