The North Zulch women’s basketball team improved to 3-1 in district play with sizable victories in Bartlett Jan. 5 and at NZHS Friday over Calvert. The Lady Bulldogs held their opponents to just 17 points in each matchup.

“We turned (Bartlett and Calvert) over repeatedly,” said head coach Michael Stenseth. “The challenge there is trying to get the kids to continue to play hard, keep focused and get better, despite who we are playing against.”

North Zulch competed with both Lakin Madden and Katelyn Crocker on the floor Jan. 5 for the first time since early in the season. Madden, however, would miss Friday’s matchup with a non-COVID-19 illness. The team has also been dealing with other injuries, including a limited role for Ayesha Suny.

“It is hard to get the continuity that you want when you don’t have the right combination all of the time,” said Stenseth on his shorthanded roster. “That is the challenge, but everybody is dealing with those challenges.”

Madden hit five three-pointers in the team’s 57-17 victory over Bartlett Jan. 5 and led the team in scoring with 20 points. She was followed by Shae Keith with 14 points and Crocker with eight.

The Lady Bulldogs stifled Bartlett defensively throughout the contest and held them under 10 points in every quarter but the third. After establishing a large lead, they entrenched the blowout victory with a 24-point effort in the final eight minutes.

Crocker then led North Zulch in scoring when they returned home Friday in the team’s 55-17 win over Calvert. Her effort included a 12-point second quarter to help bury Calvert early and four three-pointers. Dannicka Diserens followed Crocker with 11 points while Keith added seven.

Calvert never scored more than seven points in a quarter at NZHS.

The Lady Bulldogs looked to improve to 4-1 in district play Tuesday with a road matchup in Dime Box. They will then host Round Top-Carmine Friday before welcoming Fayetteville, the district’s lone remaining undefeated team, to NZHS.

“(Fayetteville) will come here with an undefeated district record and we look forward to playing them next Tuesday,” said Stenseth.

The Lady Bulldogs fell to Fayetteville 70-62 in their Dec. 15 road matchup. The team was without Madden in the loss and could never overcome an early deficit despite a 22-point surge in the third quarter.

The Lady Bulldogs will begin their second round of district play with Friday’s Round Top matchup. They were originally scheduled to compete in a district with Richards and Buckholts, but the programs suspended their seasons.

They officially ended their scheduled non-district slate Dec. 29.

“We played some 2A and 3A (schools) that gave us some different looks, whether it was their ability to press or they were bigger than us,” said Stenseth on the team’s non-league matchups. “We saw those different kind of combinations to prepare for what we would run into when we get into the playoffs.”