Niagara senior Mallory Sanicki (5) dribbles the ball up the court against Wausaukee on Tuesday in Niagara, Wis. (Sean Chase/Daily News photo)

NIAGARA, Wis. — Entering Tuesday’s contest against Wausaukee, Niagara senior Mallory Sanicki had one thing on her mind — entering the Lady Badgers’ 1,000-point club.

However, the pressure to accomplish this feat was palpable in the first half.

“”I was just so hyper focused on getting that milestone,” Sanicki said. “Then, continuing on with the game and making sure we got stuff done that I think I was in my head a little bit.”

She ended the frame with seven points. At halftime, Niagara head coach Karl Lamoreaux calmed her down, and the rest was history.

With six minutes and 48 seconds left in the game, Mallory Sanicki buried a right-handed layup and joined the Lady Badgers’ 1,000-point club as Niagara grabbed a 60-15 Marinette & Oconto Conference win.

“My thought when it left my hand was, please go in,” Sanicki said. “I didn’t want to miss a layup for my 1,000th. But, it felt amazing. It felt like a weight was lifted off my chest. I finally did it.”

After the shot went in and Sanicki celebrated with her teammates, she ran up the bleachers and hugged her dad.

“They’ve been there through it all and they are the reason that I’m here,” Sanicki said. “Without them pushing me and putting in the time to rebound for me, I wouldn’t be here.

“They were the first thing I thought of after I took the picture with my team. I knew I needed to thank them again.”

As far as the game was concerned, Niagara knew it had the upper hand entering the contest, but the Lady Badgers still had to execute.

“We knew that we were the better team coming into this game,” Niagara head coach Karl Lamoreaux said. “They’re having a rough season and we’re playing pretty well right now. We figured we’d be able to handle them fairly easily, but you’ve got to come out and play.

“I told them, ‘You don’t take anyone for granted, you’ve got to come out and play.’ And we did. We were ahead 15-0, we got off to a good start.”

Although the entire gym knew that Sanicki was pushing for 1,000 points, Lamoreaux didn’t change the offensive game plan in the first half.

“We started the game with the plan that we’re not going to play the first half any differently than we do any other night,” Lamoreaux said. “The ball just wasn’t dropping for her. But after halftime, we had that nice lead and we were able to try and get her the ball, where she could score.”

He did, however, change the starting lineup, giving senior Marley Jones the start.

“Marley’s worked really hard, all season long,” Lamoreaux said. “She’s a leader. She’s one of the greatest kids you’ll ever meet and it was a great opportunity to have her start.”

The Lady Badgers started the game on a roll offensively, and built a 15-0 lead, six minutes into the first half. Sophomore Bristol Sanicki led the way in the first half with three 3-pointers. Mallory Sanicki added seven points while Alivia Kleikamp and Peyton Neuens-Allred each tallied five. As a result, Nigara took a 36-9 lead into halftime.

The second half was all Mallory Sanicki for the Lady Badgers. She attacked the basket and piled on 17 points, while Jones added six points and Sydney Swanson added three, pushing Niagara to the win.

Mallory Sanicki led all scorers in the contest with 24 points. She is eighth all-time for the Lady Badgers with 1,001 points. She needs 24 points to pass Trisha Neveau at 1,024 points.

“Mallory is a four-year starter,” Lamoreaux said. “She’s been on really good teams and then we had a rebuilding year, last year. But she was the steadying force in last year’s team. Now, we’re building again this year on her shoulders. All of the girls look up to her. She’s put in a lot of time. She’s a great kid on top of it and she’s a really good basketball player. I’m really fortunate that I got to coach her for four years.”

Niagara also received contributions from Elesia Sweig (4 points), Bristol Sanicki (9 points), Jones (10 points), Neuens-Allred (5 points), Swanson (5 points), Kleikamp (5 points) and Rachael Walker (4 points).

The Lady Badgers head to Suring, Wis. today for a conference clash with the Eagles.

“I want to see them take more from our win against Coleman, than tonight,” Lamoreaux said. “Because, we came back. We had a 10-point deficit in the first half and fought our way back. The energy and the desire to win was there against Coleman that I hadn’t seen earlier in the season. So, I think we’re there. I think we’re building and it’s the perfect time of the year.”

PATRIOTS 59, MOUNTAINEERS 39

ISHPEMING — After snapping its seven-game losing streak last week, the Iron Mountain girls varsity team went to Ishpeming Township on Tuesday looking to make it two in a row.

However, a two-point first quarter doomed the Mountaineers (4-12, 1-9) and Westwood (6-8, 3-5) picked up the 59-39 West PAC-East win.

Senior Macy Linsenbigler scored Iron Mountain’s points in the first. The Patriots took advantage of the slow start and took a 13-2 lead after one quarter.

The Mountaineers righted the ship in the second. Linsenbigler scored nine points while Gerilis Sampoll-Torres, Bella Pickett and Alysia Wood each added two. They held Westwood to seven points and cut the deficit to three points, 20-17, at halftime.

Sampoll-Torres led Iron Mountain’s attack in the third, scoring five points.

Wood added three but the Patriots outscored the Mountaineers 14-11 in the frame. Iron Mountain made two 3-pointers in the final quarter, but Westwood’s offense exploded for 25 points. The run secured the win for the Patriots.

Linsenbigler led the Mountaineers with 17 points. She scored 35, a new career-high in Iron Mountain’s win against Manistique on Jan. 30.

The Mountaineers also received contributions from Pickett (3 points), Wood (9 points) and Sampoll-Torres (10 points).

Iron Mountain returns home today to face Norway.