WILLMAR -- Behind the scoring of Alex Lippert and Hannah Smith and firm control of the boards, Willmar rushed by St. Cloud Apollo 61-34 in Central Lakes Conference girls basketball on Tuesday.
Next Willmar (13-3, 18-4) travels to Marshall on Thursday.
"That's a game we need to win if we're going to have a shot at the No. 1 seed," said Willmar coach Brad Atchison.
The Cardinals have met only one other Section 2AAA foe, beating Hutchinson 52-40 in the season opener.
Against the Eagles, Willmar piled up a 34-11 gap in rebounds.
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"We dominated the lane," said Atchison. "They had no one to guard Lippert. When they sagged in on her, Hannah took it outside and made four threes."
Lippert scored 16 points and collected eight rebounds. Smith finished with 14 points and seven rebounds and Jena Thompson 11 points and six rebounds.
The Eagles got nine points from Andezu Orionzi and eight by Hailey Dunsmoor. The Eagles have been without top player Courtney Lynch who broke her hand since a 54-40 loss to Willmar on Jan. 19.
Willmar 61, SC Apollo 34
SC Apollo (4-12, 8-14) 18 16 -- 34
Willmar (13-3, 18-4) 32 29 -- 61
ST. CLOUD APOLLO - 12-35 FG (2-8 3-pt); 8-14 FT; 11 rebounds; 14 fouls ... Scoring: Abby Notch 5, Nasima Omar 1, Haley Asfeld 1, Moriah Novacinski 4, Katrina Johnson 4, Hailey Dunsmoor 8, Andezu Orionzi 9, Maggie Holmberg 2 ... 3-point shots: Notch 1, Johnson 1 ... Rebound leaders: Orionzi 5 ... Assist leaders: Asfeld 4 ... Steal leaders: Orionzi 2
WILLMAR - 23-47 FG (5-12 3-pt); 10-20 FT; 34 rebounds; 15 fouls ... Scoring: Mariel Aamot 7, Hannah Smith 14, Sara Kalloff 2, Carrie Boike 2, Kayli Gimse 5, Laura Swartz 2, Jen Knake 2, Alex Lippert 16, Jena Thompson 11 ... 3-point shots: Aamot 1, Smith 4 ... Rebound leaders: Lippert 8, Smith 7, Thompson 6 ... Assist leaders: Aamot 4, Thompson 4 ... Steal leaders: Thompson 3, Smith 3 ... Blocked shots: Lippert 5
