Centerville too much for Newton girls in season opener

With three starters gone and a bunch of new faces playing in new roles, Newton girls basketball coach Eric Vander Velden expected to see a few bumps in the road.

On Tuesday, the Cardinals hit their first bump during the home opener against Centerville.

The Big Reds scored the game’s first nine points, led 16-5 after one quarter and rolled to a 47-23 non-conference win during the season opener for both squads.

“We have players in roles that they’ve never been in before,” Vander Velden said. “We are going to have to bumps in the road.”

Sophia Reynolds buried a jumper with 3:05 to go in the first quarter to put the Cardinals on the board. She finished with a team-high 10 points in the loss.

Reynolds’ 3-pointer made it 14-5 late in the first.

Newton (0-1) was outscored 13-7 in the second. Kya Butler, who is playing point guard at the varsity level for the first time, hit a jumper early in the second, but Centerville used a 10-0 run to go up 29-7 before another trey by Reynolds.

Rori Nehring’s jumper finished the first half. She registered six points, five rebounds, three steals and two assists for the Cardinals.

Nehring opened the third with a bucket, but that’s all Newton would score in the period as Centerville ended the frame with 10 straight points.

The biggest issues offensively for the Cardinals were the 35 turnovers and 20 percent shooting from the floor. The Cardinals were 3-of-20 from 3-point range and took just two free throws.

“Their 1-3-1 gave us trouble,” Vander Velden said. “We had tunnel vision sometimes on our skip passes and they were right at the player, not trying to avoid the defense. We will see other 1-3-1 zones this year. We’ll improve and we’ll start tomorrow.”

The Cardinals won the fourth 9-4. Audrey Rausch opened the frame with a triple, Nehring hit a jumper and Reynolds made a pair of free throws with 3:30 to go. Haylie Ryan’s jumper ended the scoring.

Centerville turned the ball over 19 times but also made 48 percent from the floor. The Big Reds (1-0) were 14-of-23 from the free-throw line.

“The second half was a lot better effort defensively,” Vander Velden said. “We had our subs in there at one point and they held them scoreless for a bit. Our bench was getting loud. Previous teams might have given up in the second half, but we didn’t fold. Our effort was there.”

Centerville’s Rachel George led all scorers with 15 points and chipped in eight rebounds and five blocks. Mickey Stephens added 11 points, five rebounds, six assists and five steals.

“I knew (George) was going to be a force down low,” Vander Velden said. “She was good. She put the ball on the floor and drove on us, too.”

Rausch scored three points and grabbed two rebounds. Cadie Horn pulled down four boards, Jaz Cooper and Kealey Manning both collected three rebounds, Butler swiped two steals and Hailey Sumpter recorded two blocks.