Offensive woes for Lady 'Dogs

Whitefish extended their losing streak to eight games after decisive road losses to Flathead and Frenchtown last week in which they posted consecutive quarters in both games with just four points.

Flathead held the Lady 'Dogs scoreless in the first quarter Jan. 8 as they rolled to a 58-20 win, while Frenchtown nearly matched that score the following night with a 56-21 romp.

Despite what the scoreboard read, the blowout losses aren't for a lack of effort.

Against Flathead, Lady 'Dogs were seen flying across the court all night diving for loose balls and battling for rebounds. But, when presented the opportunity to score, everything fell apart.

"We are having a hard time putting the ball in the hole," Whitefish coach Sean Duff said. "We need to be a little more patient. We are getting some good looks, we just aren't shooing the ball very well."

Ill-advised passes leading to turnovers and an inability to finish at the net have fueled the losing streak, Duff said, and if Whitefish can plugs those leaks, good things will happen.

At times, Whitefish (0-8, 0-2) shows flashes of greatness.

One of those glimmers came in the third quarter against the Bravettes. Jessica Slaybaugh made an aggressive slash to the basket, then in midair, dumped off a pass to Olivia Nagler on the baseline, who put down an easy lay-up.

The play was a nice display of communication and what the team is capable of when clicking on all cylinders, something Duff hopes to see more often.

Slaybaugh led the team in scoring against the Bravettes with five points, including a three-pointer in the fourth quarter.

The team is moving the ball up the court easier than from their first game of the season, Duff said, but when settling into their half-court offense, they are still making too many sloppy plays.

"We have to be able to handle ourselves better when teams are up in our faces," Duff said. "We have to focus on not making needless turnovers and running the offense under pressure."

Duff credited the team's defensive play and spirit, pointing to Nagler and Shelby Backer for the efforts against the taller and stronger girls from Flathead.

"Defensively, we did a great job," Duff said. "What we lack in skills, we make up for in heart. They are the best group of kids after getting beat. They never have their heads down. We still believe we can be the Cinderella story."

Duff said that if the team keeps reaching their small goals, the wins will take care of themselves.

Whitefish hosts Class B Bigfork today at 7:30 p.m.