Short another starter, Demon girls lose again

   Empty possessions and an even shorter bench than before Christmas break led to the Dodge High Red Demon girls basketball team's fourth loss of the season Saturday at the DCHS fieldhouse.
    The Demons played the undefeated Wichita Collegiate Spartans close in each quarter. But by the middle of the third quarter, the Spartan lead had grown to double digits, and the 3A contenders had a firm grip on the game's outcome.
    The Demons (1-4), lost 50-37.
    "I didn't think we shot the ball that badly," said Red Demon coach Justin Briggs. "It's just that possession here and there where we miss an easy shot or have an empty possession and turn it over that's making us play from behind."
    The Demons began the game with the hot hand from the perimeter and traded an early 1-point lead back and forth with the Spartans in the opening quarter. Collegiate took an 11-10 advantage after the first frame.
    "We're going to need to shoot it that well or better to be in some of these games coming up," Briggs said.
    The Demons will have to go the rest of the season without the services of starting forward Codi Erlich, who left the team's Dec. 20 game against the Douglass Bulldogs due to an injury to her right knee.
    The Spartans did most of their damage in the second and third quarters, outscoring the Demons 27-17 during the middle of the game. A 3-pointer and a slashing 3-point play to the bucket from Collegiate's Ashia Woods gave the visitors their first 10-point lead, up 20-10 with just over six minutes left to play in the half.
    Woods led all scorers in the game with 27 points from all over the floor. She averaged 28.3 —  good for third best in the state, according to the Wichita Eagle — coming into the matchup.
    Sadie Clark added nine for the Spartans, who moved to 4-0 with the win.
    "Both of those young ladies are special players because they can guard on the perimeter and then they can get inside the paint and be effective as well," said Collegiate coach Terrence Phox. "When you can put a bigger athletic player on a smaller athletic player, it tends to bother that smaller player."
    The Demons moved to a four-guard set offensively in the second half to bring in more ball handlers against the Spartans' pressure defense, but turnovers and missed shots kept the Demons from gaining any ground on the front-running Spartans.
    Junior Valerie Ortiz and senior Sydney Matheny paced the Demons with 12 points apiece.
    The Red Demons will have a full week of practice before the season's Western Athletic Conference opener against the Garden City Buffaloes on Saturday, Jan. 10. The Buffs were 3-2 as of Sunday.
    Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the fieldhouse.