Grizzlies steamroll Falcons

Walter Payton's Sarah Lendy (left) works the ball inside against Prosser's LaQuita Williams in last Friday night's 56-20 Windy City North home win.
(Eric Davis/For Pioneer Press)

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Walter Payton had just one game last week but they made sure to get their money's worth in a 56-20 demolition of Prosser.

The Windy City North home win locked up a third place finish in conference for a team that has showed a lot of promise this season.

While the Grizzlies were expected to win big against Prosser, sometimes those games can turn into traps.

"We just tried to stay as focused as we could," Grizzlies guard Kathleen Molloy said. "We try to get pumped up before the game like we normally do."

Prosser (4-19, 0-8) never really stood a chance as Walter Payton (12-6, 5-3) took an 18-7 lead after one quarter. The Grizzlies continued to pour it on as they led 31-9 at halftime and 42-15 after three quarters.

Molloy led all scorers with 19 points while Sarah Lendy (12 points) and Miracle Pitts also made key contributions.

"We knew we had an advantage over them," Lendy said. "But we still wanted to come out and play our hardest. I think overall, we exhibited a lot of teamwork and that's good for us."

The Grizzlies played intense defense all game long, and that's what made the difference.

"Everyone just came out with a lot of energy and I think it really showed on defense," Molloy said.

"We went over the defense a lot in practice so everyone knew where to go," Pitts added.

The biggest disappointment for Payton so far was the fact that they finished 5-3 in conference and took third place, well short of their goal of adding a conference crown to their trophy case.

"We had a few losses that we shouldn't of had," Molloy said. "But I think overall, we're having a better season. We're getting respect from people who know it's not just an easy win over Payton anymore."

The key conference loss came Thursday, Dec. 20 to Lane Tech. The Grizzlies held the Indians to 30 points in the first three quarters but then gave up 28 in the final period as Lane won 58-52.

"We had the lead most of the game and led by 10 points in the fourth quarter," Molloy said. "They had 19 free throws in the fourth quarter. It was a tough loss because it should have been ours."

The good news is the team feels a turnaround is in progress.

"We had some tough times but we've pulled everything together," Lendy said. "We're heading on a good path now."

Walter Payton will try and take its momentum from the big win over Prosser into the city playoffs, which begin this week.

"We want to win," Pitts said. "I'm going to play hard and I just want everyone to step up, do their part, and we'll win."

With a couple playoff victories, Payton could face Marshall, Whitney Young or Von Steuben, some of the best teams in state.

"We're just going got take it one game at a time," Lendy said. "We can't just assume we're going to win those game (to get to them)."