After winning back-to-back games to start the post winter break schedule, the Atlantic Trojans struggled against the Kuemper Catholic Knights as they fell 60-41 Friday night. Although they did good things at different points throughout the game, the Trojans were never able to sustain it. On the other end, the perimeter shooting was the story for Kuemper Catholic. The knights knocked down 10 three pointers, eight of which came in the first half. Despite keeping the game close for the first quarter and a half, things got away from the Trojans by halftime, and they would trail by double-digits the rest of the game.

Kuemper Catholic hit the ground running in the opening frame. The first two possessions saw the Knights hit back-to-back threes to open with a six-point lead. It was apparent right away that Kuemper Catholic wanted to shoot from the perimeter. They did an excellent job of moving the ball around to open up the three point shooting, and it paid off for Kaylie Simons, who nailed five long balls in the first half alone. Meanwhile, the Trojans struggled on offense early. Scoring their first points halfway through the opening quarter, Atlantic hit just two field goals in the frame. However, the back half of the first was much better than their start. Atlantic seemed to gain some momentum that was aided by a late Makenna Schroeder three-pointer as kept the game in reach.

Down by five heading into the second quarter, the Trojans had a much better start to the second quarter. They were able to keep pace with the Knights and slightly narrowed the deficit. Schroeder added two more threes for the Trojans as it was their most productive quarter. However, it was also Kuemper Catholic’s most productive. Simon drained three of her five first-half threes in the second frame while Elsa Tiefenthaler scored eight points of her own.  Despite the promising start, the Trojans struggled in the middle part of the quarter. In a three-minute span, Atlantic was outscored 10-5, and although the Trojans had a better end to the half, the damage was already done as they found themselves down by 13 heading into the break.

Little changed in the second half. Atlantic was held to single digits in each of the final two quarters. Dylin Ball led the team with four points in the second half, all of which came in the fourth quarter. Although Kuemper Catholic’s perimeter shooting cooled down tremendously, they didn’t need it to be lights out. Thanks to the lead they were able to build, the Knights played a low-risk and controlled second half. Tiefenthaler led the team with six second half points to bring her total to 19, and although Simons was quiet in the second half, her work in the first half was enough to earn her a share of the game lead in points with Tiefenthaler. Ultimately, Kuemper Catholic was the better team as Atlantic struggled with offensive consistency and efficiency while struggling to contain the three-point shooting early. Head coach Dan Vargason said the struggles on offense were the main issue.

However, the defense didn’t help the issue.

As the season heads towards its final month, Vargason knows that its the small things that make a big difference.

The Trojans will be back on the hardwood on the road next Tuesday when they visit Clarinda. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m., and you can catch the action on KJAN with coverage beginning at 5:50 p.m.