For the first time in the 2022-23 season, one team is alone atop the Middle Border Conference standings.

After winning a pivotal conference game on the road against Altoona on Tuesday, Dec. 6, the Prescott Cardinals moved into a share of first place with Baldwin-Woodville in the league standings. Prescott got some help from Somerset on Saturday, Dec. 17, when the Spartans defeated Baldwin-Woodville 44-39 which gave the Cardinals sole possession of first place.

With the win on the road against Altoona, Prescott exorcised some of last year’s demons. Although the Cardinals won the Middle Border Conference Championship last season, the Altoona Railroaders were the only team that defeated the Cardinals in league play – and they did it twice. For Prescott’s first-year head coach Owen Hamilton, Tuesday was a chance to avenge last year’s losses.

“I think I wanted it as bad as I did because I know how much our girls wanted it,” Hamilton said. “With them being the only conference team that beat us last year, we definitely wanted to get one back on them.”

Prescott went to Altoona on Tuesday, Dec. 6, and earned a 60-54 win to improve to 4-1 overall and 3-0 in Middle Border Conference action. It was a complete team win, as three different Cardinals scored in double-digits including senior Katrina Budworth’s 16, junior Lila Posthuma’s 11 and freshman Violet Otto’s 10 points off the bench.

For Prescott, the win wasn’t just a chance to avenge last year’s pair of losses, it also served as an opportunity to build confidence in this specific iteration of the 2022-23 Cardinals. Coach Owen Hamilton spoke about his team’s performance against the Railroaders.

“Our girls played exactly how we were supposed to, they fought hard and even when the game was getting close, I felt like there was a confidence that we were going to finish the job,” Hamilton said. “I think the win was a big step forward for us, we definitely found more areas to improve in, but like I’ve said before it’s the easily correctable things that we can work on the next day while it’s still fresh.”

While the aforementioned Posthuma has served as Prescott’s primary playmaker this season, all of the Cardinals’ stars and role players had success in that pivotal game on the road against Altoona. In total, eight different Cardinals scored in Tuesday night’s contest.

“The number one thing with our team is that it doesn’t really matter who the ‘star player’ is for each game,” Hamilton said. “We play our game and feed the hot hand, some nights we get a couple of hot hands and that just helps us out even more. In a game like that, you hope that it’s a couple of hot hands and it was for us against Altoona.”

With the win, Prescott improved to a league-best 3-0 in Middle Border Conference play. Although there is still a lot of season left, the Cardinals appear to be in the driver’s seat in the race for a fourth consecutive league title.

Even with the early success, the Prescott Cardinals remain hungry to continue improving and working until the job is officially finished. Coach Hamilton spoke about how Prescott’s players and coaching staff view the quest for another championship.

“Starting 3-0 always helps the confidence, but the girls and our coaches won’t be happy until we lock it up,” Hamilton said. “I’ve always been in a mindset that we control our own destiny, so as long as we show up each day and take care of what we can control, we will be just fine.”

As a first-year head coach, Hamilton has introduced new offensive systems for his players to learn, and the Cardinals are already averaging more points per game than they did last season. The new system makes Posthuma one of the primary decision-makers as she gets the ball at the high post and then operates from there.

For Hamilton, the early-season development, particularly in the new offensive scheme, has been adapted faster than expected, which has created some good problems for the coaching staff. He spoke about how his team has developed this season and how it’s been ahead of schedule.

“The girls are getting better each day and honestly there’s been so much more growth from them than I expected,” Hamilton said. “They’re such a hungry group, so the growth seems to be happening naturally and I get to step in and help them fine-tune it even more. Our offense is one that can take a while to grow into, but they work so hard on that end each day that we’re able to start advancing it a little more than I had planned. They make my job harder on me in the best way possible.”

Although there is still a long way to go in the 2022-23 season, Prescott has gotten out to the best start in the Middle Border Conference, even under a completely revamped coaching staff. The Cardinals are slated to be back in action on Tuesday, Dec. 20, at home against Amery. That game is slated to begin at 7 p.m.

Prescott senior guard Izzy Matzek sets up the offense during a game earlier this year. Matzek was one of eight different Cardinals who scored during the game on the road against Altoona on Tuesday, Dec. 6. Photo by Reagan Hoverman