-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla St. Edmond celebrate beating Clarion-Goldfield/Dows on Friday

As the St. Edmond girls celebrated on Friday, head coach CJ Tracy simply stood back and let it happen.

Tracy watched from just off the court as the Gael players embraced one another following a 50-43 victory over Clarion-Goldfield/Dows.

With the win, St. Edmond (1-1 overall, 1-0 in North Central Conference) snapped a 46-game losing skid.

“It definitely feels good,” Tracy said. “But I’m just happy for these kids. They have been working so hard and for them to finally have this result, I feel so good for them. We came out, played like we felt we were capable of and we won the game.

“It wasn’t easy there down the stretch, but we found a way to hold on.”

Anna Lursen scored 12 points with eight rebounds and five steals to lead the way for the Gaels, with Josie Harvey and Payton Bradley each adding nine.

For the Cowgirls (0-2, 0-1), Sawyer Morrical had a game-high 19 with all of them coming after the half. Elliot Ennis added 11 points and 16 rebounds.

“We felt like we could use our speed and cause them trouble with our press,” Tracy said. “The girls came out ready to go and we executed.”

St. Edmond forced 14 turnovers in the first quarter and finished the night with 25 steals. They built a 13-point lead early thanks in large part to five Harvey steals in the opening eight minutes as the junior finished with seven.

Clarion-Goldfield/Dows would rally on the back of Morrical, who hit three 3-pointers. She and Ennis combined for 20 of the 22 points scored in the fourth, getting it down to a seven-point deficit.

Lursen and senior Michaela Leiting helped seal the win with back-to-back buckets to push the lead up to double digits once more.

“I was impressed with our defensive effort,” Tracy said. “To hold a team to five points at the half really was incredible. We had a few mistakes there in the second half and they were able to rally, but the kids responded and played great down the stretch when it mattered the most.

“This is part of the process and we’ll continue to work on getting better.”

St. Edmond hosts Southeast Valley on Tuesday night while Clarion-Goldfield/Dows heads to Iowa Falls-Alden next Friday.

ST. EDMOND 50, CLARION-GOLDFIELD/DOWS 43

St. Edmond — Michaela Leiting 1 0-2 2, Anna Lursen 4 4-15 12, Chloe Palmer 0 3-4 3, Ava Underberg 3 1-2 7, Josie Harvey 2 4-5 9, Silvia Heldorfer 0 2-2 2, Maya Neverman 1 0-0 2, Payton Bradley 4 1-4 9, Abby Huss 1 1-2 4, Kaili Henning 0 0-0 0, Sophia Schlienz 0 0-0 0. Totals: 24 16-36 50.

Clarion-Goldfield/Dows — Sawyer Morrical 6 4-6 19, Indy Johnson 2 2-4 6, Elliot Ennis 4 3-12 11, Sydney Friesleben 1 0-0 2, Paige Brooks 0 0-0 0, Kennedy Jackson 0 0-0 0, Blaire Askelsen 1 1-1 3, Adelynn Howell 0 0-0 0, Aysa Lyons 1 0-0 2. Totals: 15 10-23 43.

Quarter scores: St. Edmond led 16-3, 23-5, 37-21. Three-point goals: St. Edmond 2 (Harvey 1, Huss 1); Clarion-Goldfield/Dows 3 (Morrical 3). Total rebounds: St. Edmond 22, Clarion-Goldfield/Dows 44. Steals: St. Edmond 25, Clarion-Goldfield/Dows 16. Blocked shots: St. Edmond 0, Clarion-Goldfield/Dows 1. Personal fouls: St. Edmond 22, Clarion-Goldfield/Dows 27. Fouled out: Jackson, Askelsen.