Glendale’s strong finish wasn’t enough to overcome a sluggish start in Wednesday’s Ozark Conference home game against Waynesville.
Facing a 21-point deficit in the first half, Glendale got within a single possession twice in the fourth quarter. But the Falcons were unable to finish the comeback as Waynesville held on for a 59-53 victory.
GAME PHOTOS: WAYNESVILLE VS. GLENDALE
“We’ve gotta be able to put 32 minutes together and play with that heart and intensity at the beginning. I felt like we came out flat and then we were trying to dig ourselves out of a hole,” said Falcons coach Renee Temple. “We did, it just wasn’t quite enough. Had we played like that the whole game, just like I told them afterwards, it may have been a different outcome.”
Tigers senior forward Kallie Bildner, a Lindenwood commit, finished with 34 points and 16 rebounds in the win as Waynesville improved to 8-3 overall.
Clinging to a two-point lead in the final 30 seconds, Bildner and teammate Ashton Pilz each went 2-for-2 at the free throw line around a missed Glendale 3-pointer to seal the victory.
Waynesville never trailed in the game and led by as many as 21 in the first half. A Bildner putback gave Waynesville a 53-45 lead with under four minutes remaining.
“At times throughout the season, we’ll have a moment where it doesn’t go our way or we get frustrated and drop our heads then we’ll pull ourselves out of the funk,” said Waynesville coach Brittany Matlock.
Glendale made it close to the end, and got within 53-50 on a Kait Baird 3-pointer.
Later, trailing 55-52 with a minute to go, the Falcons forced a Waynesville turnover then went 1-for-2 at the free throw line to get within two points.
“This team, they continue to play hard and play with heart,” Temple said. “Just their persistence to keep battling, keep fighting, I’m proud of them for that.”
Leading 20-8 after the first quarter, Waynesville got nine straight points – all from Bildner – to start the second quarter and take a 21-point advantage.
Glendale chipped away at the deficit from there thanks to its perimeter shooting. The Falcons made seven 3-pointers – six coming in the second half.
“We weren’t going to go out there and chase them, but we weren’t even getting out and getting a hand up to contest them,” Matlock said. “Once we started doing that, it was like, ‘Oh, ok.’ But give (Glendale) credit, when they were open they knocked down shots.”
Sophomore guard Anna Fredrick made four 3-pointers and finished with a team-high 15 points.
“We came in with the mentality of being ready to shoot,” Temple said. “Waynesville played a little bit of sagging man (defense), which allowed us to get those shots off.”
Bildner had 21 points and 10 rebounds in the first half alone, before Glendale made adjustments to limit her in the second half by collapsing on the post and denying entry passes with help defense.
“She’s use to the double- and triple-teams and whatever,” Matlock said. “We didn’t do a good job, in the middle of the game, of feeding the ball to her. We’ve done a good job of getting it into her then kicking it out to the open people, or diving. We played some different kids tonight in different spots that maybe they’re not use to, which hopefully in time – by the end of February – they will be.”
Glendale fell to 6-8 overall, but the six victories are triple that of Glendale’s 2-win total last season.
Waynesville hosts Hickman on Thursday night to cap off a three-games-in-four-days stretch. Glendale competes in the Rogersville Tournament next week.
Waynesville 59, Glendale 53
Waynesville 20 13 8 18 — 59
Glendale 8 15 13 17 — 53
Waynesville – Kallie Bildner 34, Re’Shawna Stone 13, Ashton Pilz 6, Payton Aragon 2, Nina Kizzee 2, Kiara Shoulders 2
Glendale – Anna Fredrick 15, Hannah Pinkston 9, Gabby Mathews 7, Teaira Clancy 7, Allie Haden 5, Kait Baird 5, Morgan Zimmerman 5
