By STEPHEN GLOVER

For the Call

When asked why his Mehlville Senior High Panthers lost 55-48 Friday night at Parkway South, girls’ head coach Ed Feibig gave an honest answer — coaching.

The Panthers (12-2, 5-1 Suburban West) trailed 23-11 after the first quarter. Poor defensive coverage allowed Parkway South to hit a couple three-point shots and extend its lead. Feibig needed more defensive pressure so he switched from a zone defense to a man-to-man coverage scheme.

“When they (Parkway South) hit a couple of three’s in the first quarter, I thought that we just were not covering them,” Feibig told the Call. “I called a time-out and they hit two more shots on us. I then decided to switch from the zone to man-to-man defense in the second quarter and we were fine after that.”

“Fine” may not have been the best description of the Panthers’ defense. Mehlville held Parkway South to two points in the third quarter and three baskets in the second half. The first half was too sloppy to overcome, however.

Mehlville’s Kayla Gordon led all scorers with 20 points and five rebounds in the losing effort to Parkway South. The sophomore guard averages 9.4 points and four re-bounds a game this season.

“She (Gordon) was able to take it to the basket and run the floor really well for us,” Feibig said. “It was one of those things where whoever was guarding her, she was beating them over and over again.”

Junior forward Michelle Senf added 10 points and 11 rebounds for the Panthers, notching her eighth double-double of the season. Senf averages 13.9 points and 10.6 re-bounds a game.

“It was another good game for her,” Feibig said. “She played good defense and got into a bit of foul trouble, but she’s really been consistent this year.”

The Panthers have a non-conference home game against Fort Zumwalt South at 7 p.m. today — Jan. 27. The Bulldogs beat Mehlville 67-61 last season after the Panthers let a commanding 40-25 halftime lead slip away.

“We played them last year and they pressed us full court and beat us,” Feibig said. “We know that they’re really athletic and aggressive. It ought to be a good ballgame.”