BUCYRUS — Colonel Crawford was one of the heavy favorites to win the Northern 10 Athletic Conference.

Some of the reasons were on full display Friday night. The Lady Eagles used a lockdown defense and strong rebounding to glide past Bucyrus, 54-24, on Phil A. Joseph Floor at Alex Kish Memorial Gymnasium.

Colonel Crawford (6-0, 3-0 N10) forced 21 Lady Red turnovers and outrebounded Bucyrus (0-7, 0-4) 41-18 — 25-1 on the offensive end.

Eagles coach Zac Bauer credited his team depth for the disparities.

“Defense is our focus all the time and with the team length we have, once I turn up the pressure and get these guys to play fast, we can play a lot of kids,” Bauer said.

“With rebounding, you’ve got to start with Robin Ehmann,” Bauer added. “She gets 11 rebounds by herself — six or seven offensive rebounds — and that has been her goal from Day 1.”

The Lady Red were able to hang close through the first six minutes. Bucyrus tied the game at 5-5 on a Reese Garvin 3-point shot at 4:05.

Colonel Crawford took the lead for good at 8-5 on a 3-point play by Ehmann. That started a string of scores on five straight possessions that took the visitors’ advantage to 18-5 by period’s end. The Eagles set the tone with an 11-2 rebounding edge in the first eight minutes.

“Talk about Emmi Powers and Mira Holt going to the glass and what they do with their length,” Bauer said. “That’s a credit to our kids knowing their roles and knowing how to get the job done.”

Shooting was an issue for both teams in the second quarter. Colonel Crawford was just two of 15 from the field and Lady Red couldn’t capitalize, going 0-5.

“That’s why we preach defense,” Bauer said. “We know we’re not always going to make shots and some nights you’re not going to have it. But you’ve got to guard, and you can guard every night.”

The result was the Eagles padded their lead to 25-6 at intermission.

“We came out in a zone (defense). We were trying to prevent the drives, and they started hitting some shots,” Bucyrus coach Brian Seybert said. “They hit nine 3s tonight, probably not their forte, but they did it. They got us out of (the zone).

“The second half, we played a little better,” Seybert said. “The first half, we just dug too deep of hole. At 19 (point deficit), we still had an opportunity to try to cut it in half. By the end of the third quarter, it just wasn’t in the cards.”

Colonel Crawford used a 17-9 advantage in the third quarter to erase all doubt, expanding the lead to 42-15. The Eagles led by as many as 32, at 54-22, on a 3 by Claire Smith before Aubrie Kimmel set the final score with a layup at the final buzzer.

So stout was the Colonel Crawford defense that it shut out Bucyrus’ leading scorer, Malina Rowland.

“That’s a credit to kids knowing personnel, knowing the game plan,” Bauer said.

“We spoke before the game that if they got hot, not getting frustrated,” Bauer added. “There are some explosive scorers on that team. Malina Rowland and Marissa Middleton are playing really well, and they can get hot. Don’t get shaken, don’t get frustrated. Take it one possession at a time.”

Middleton led Lady Red with nine points and Garvin added eight. Savannah Clark had four rebounds.

Ehmann led the Eagles with 15 points to go with her 11 boards. Holt added 12 points and seven rebounds.

“It still comes down to we’ve got to make some shots, and we’ve got to be able to handle pressure,” Seybert said. “We can’t panic in the first half.

“Us not making a good shot and them coming down and making a basket — 4-6 points right in a row — it’s a quick switch and that changes the momentum of a game. We didn’t take advantage of opportunities. They’re a tough team. They’re 6-0 for a reason.”

Colonel Crawford also won the junior varsity game, 40-13. Lily Alberty led the Eagles with 11 points. Macie Hubble had six for Bucyrus.

Box score  

Colonel Crawford     18      7    17    12 — 54

Bucyrus                        5      1      9       9 — 24

Colonel Crawford (6-0, 3-0 N10): Shots 20-63; 3-pt. shots 9-26 (Saylor Holt 2, Mira Holt 2, Carley Zender 2, Lila Plesac, Claire Smith, Lexi Dure); Free throws 5-5; Rebounds 41 (Robin Ehmann 11); Turnovers 11. Scoring: Saylor Holt 2 0 6, Lila Plesac 1 0 3, Emmi Powers 2 0 4, Mira Holt 4 2 12, Claire Smith 1 0 3, Robin Ehmann 7 1 15, Lexi Dure 1 0 3, Carley Zender 2 2 8.

Bucyrus (0-7, 0-4 N10): Shots 10-29; 3-pt. shots 2-9 (Reese Garvin, Savannah Clark); Free throws 2-8; Rebounds 18 (Savannah Clark 4); Turnovers 21. Scoring: Aubrie Kimmel 1 0 2, Reese Garvin 3 1 8, Victoria Stang 1 0 2, Marissa Middleton 4 1 9, Savannah Clark 1 0 3.

JV: Colonel Crawford 40-13.