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Zenz ignites South girls to win Photo by Drew Fleming North Medford's Jamie MacLauchlan (32) and Tressa Manwaring defend South Medford's Lynn Wooton (shooting) as Amber Hunt, left, closes in on the action. South won, 51-36. By KRIS HENRY Tired of hearing how North Medford posts Tressa Manwaring and Ashley Nelson can dominate action, South Medford's Karla Zenz took matters into her own hands Tuesday night. The 5-foot-11 junior Panther nullified any North threat early and countered with a potent offensive punch of her own in helping South stun North 51-36 for the Panthers' first win in five years over their Medford rivals. "They're not the only ones who can be a force," Zenz said after posting 13 points, 10 rebounds and three steals in the South Medford gym. South (6-5, 2-1 SOC) took the wind out of North's sails early, scoring on eight of its first nine possessions to take a 17-2 advantage. Zenz and Panther junior Heather Fossen dominated during that stretch, combining for 11 points thanks to some nifty assists by sophomore Whitney Grant. Fossen finished with 11 points, while Lynn Wooton and Kellie Thomas each added 10. When the Panthers weren't putting on an offensive clinic, they were doing it defensively as North (4-8, 0-3) struggled to break free from South's tight man-to-man pressure. "Our goal from the beginning of the game was to play tough defense," said Zenz. "We knew that would win the game." Nelson led North with eight points, while Manwaring and Tennille Bennett each had seven. The Black Tornado crawled back into the contest when Cari Jones provided a spark off the bench with five points to clip South's lead to 17-13 entering the second quarter. Unfazed, the Panthers began another roll as North's offensive woes continued. The Black Tornado could only muster a 3-pointer by Manwaring in the second period as South extended its lead to 31-16 at halftime. "We just didn't do a very good job of finding the opportunities that they gave us in the first half," said North Medford coach J.T. Thomas. "It wasn't like we didn't have creative opportunities to score, we just did not get the ball into scoring position in the first half." The Panthers bumped their lead up to 38-18 in the third quarter before the Tornado's full-court pressure finally began paying off. North scored 10 of its 12 points in the final three minutes of the third period off its transition game. Bennett and Jones used their quickness over South's tiring guards to turn the tide for North, only to have Grant slide in for a key basket to close the third at 42-28 in South's favor. "I think fatigue had something to do with that," South Medford coach Andrea Wegner said of her team's troubles with North's pressure. "I played only six people the entire night, and (Grant) never got out of the game. We were getting a little frustrated but they pulled it back together there pretty quick." North managed to make it an eight-point game with four minutes to play, only to have its comeback hopes halted by missed shots and turnovers. A blocked shot by Thomas, a miss by Nelson, a steal by Zenz and a traveling call on Bennett marred North's next four possessions, allowing South to run its lead back up to 51-36 with 1:34 to play. The Black Tornado tried in vain to slow the Panthers throughout the game by sending them to the free-throw line, only to have South drain 16 of its first 19 foul shots before failing on its final four attempts. "It seems like no matter who we play, they always seem to shoot like 75 or 80 percent from the free-throw line," said Thomas, who was clearly disappointed with North's effort Tuesday night. "I've got no excuses for the way we're playing," he said. "We are 12 games in now. That's half a season and we're still struggling to understand the way to play the game and to play it consistently for 32 minutes. "We've got some maturing to do." The maturation process appears well in hand for South, with Grant playing a solid game at the point guard slot despite constant harassment and Zenz becoming more of a scoring threat in the post. "For a sophomore, Whitney played one heck of a game," said Wegner. "She has a lot of composure and has matured really fast for us." As for Zenz, even Wegner was blown away by the junior's intense effort against North. "That's the best she's caught the ball since she's been here," said the coach. "She was catching every ball -- one she didn't even see coming and she still made a basket on it. She just played incredible." "She's been rebounding like crazy, but she hasn't been scoring a lot this year," Wegner added. "We've really been trying to get her to shoot the ball more when she gets it in there. She seems to be gaining more confidence." And with that, Zenz is adding her name to the list of top post threats in the SOC. Although she said a win over North is enough reward. "I just wanted to play hard and beat our rival," said Zenz. "That's the big thing." NORTH MEDFORD (36) -- Hwang 4, Nelson 8, Jones 5, Manwaring 7, MacLauchlan 2, Bennett 7, Horn 0, Versteeg 1, Williams 2, Allen 0. Totals: 14-55 5-11 36. SOUTH MEDFORD (51) -- Fossen 11, Wooton 10, Zenz 13, Grant 6, Thomas 11, Hunt 0. Totals: 16-37 16-23 51. North Medford ................13 3 12 8 -- 36 South Medford .............17 14 11 9 -- 51 3-point goals -- North Medford 3-10 (Jones 1, Manwaring 1, Bennett 1), South Medford 3-5 (Fossen 3). Fouled out -- Nelson. JV score -- South Medford 48, North Medford 43. Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune Copyright� The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, OR U.S.A.