ROUNDUP: Eagles’ 1-2 post punch keys victory

Boulder City’s girls basketball team is usually at its best when its post players get on a roll.

The Eagles left little doubt of that Wednesday.

Sophomore forward Whitney Barlow had 13 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots, senior center Karlee Koopman had 12 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks, and Boulder City rolled to a 69-35 win at Western.

“They play really well together,” Eagles coach Kate Elles said of Barlow and Koopman. “With those two in the paint, we don’t get beat too much, because they’re there to block the shot.”

Boulder City (6-2) dominated defensively, holding Western to 12-for-64 shooting (18.8 percent).

The Warriors (0-2) didn’t crack double digits in the scoring column until a jump shot by Mylasia Smith with just under three minutes left in the first half to pull within 23-11.

“The positives out of this game were our defense, our help-side defense,” Elles said. “If somebody got beat, we were rotating over and helping, and we did a really nice job of that.”

The Eagles put the game far out of reach by opening the third quarter on a 20-4 run to surge ahead 49-15.

“That (run) started with Karlee Koopman’s defensive presence,” Elles said. “She’s 6-2, and any time anybody drives, we know she’s there.”

Kaitlyn Daly had nine points and four assists for Boulder City, and Jana Williams and Janika Ross added seven points each for the Eagles.

Brittany Moreland led Western with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Smith supplied eight points and six rebounds for the Warriors, who shot only 11-for-28 from the free-throw line.

Aleya Ford-Wheaton added six points, three rebounds and two blocks for Western.

Class 3A Boulder City appears to be improved after a 13-10 season last year. The Eagles went to 6-2 against 4A teams, with their only two losses coming against Northeast League contender Canyon Springs.

“Playing the 4As was my goal as soon as I got hired last April,” Elles said. “I wanted to play more 4As to get ready for 3A and hopefully state. That’s the goal.

“The girls have been working hard learning a new system, and we’re really starting to jell.”

Loara (Calif.) 44, Mountain View 26 — At Anaheim, Calif., Samantha Benno scored 16 points to lead Loara past Mountain View in the Fairmont Prep Tournament.

Briana Marruffo led the Saints with 15 points.