CLINTON -- Junior Maddie Koolbeck and sophomore Maddy Blietz poured in career highs Saturday to help lead Jefferson to a big second half in a 69-43 non-conference girls basketball win over Clinton.

“Both Maddies played outstanding,” Jefferson Coach Larry Niemeyer said.

Koolbeck paced Jefferson with 26 points while Blietz added 22.

“It gave me confidence to keep shooting when the ball was reversed,” Blietz said about shooting well early. “All my teammates encouraged me to keep shooting and it went in.”

Jefferson (7-10) trailed at halftime, 27-24, and still trailed 37-30 in the third quarter before Koolbeck took over with 10 straight points inside that gave the J-Hawks a 40-37 lead.

“I knew I needed to step up in the second half,” Koolbeck said. “My teammates did a great job of getting the ball in and I went strong.”

The big quarter from Koolbeck, combined with Blietz’s timely shooting, gave Jefferson a 44-39 lead after three quarters.

“I told Blietz at halftime not to take the dribble and just shoot,” Niemeyer said. “If she wasn’t going to shoot we wanted the ball on the other side so we would get it to  Koolbeck.”

The fourth quarter was all J-Hawks. They dominated both ends of the floor and outscored the River Queens 25-4.

The J-Hawks' already thin bench because of season-ending injuries to Rachel Broghammer, Taylor Jacobson and Kaitlyn Davidson was further shortened by the absence of junior guard Alleigha Church-Green, who missed the game because of a death in the family.

Jefferson started slow in the first quarter, but went on a 5-0 run to end the period down 16-13.

The second quarter looked like trouble for Jefferson. Koolbeck, their anchor inside, sat for five plus minutes with foul trouble.

“(Freshman Kylie) Jonas did a nice job, especially in Maddie’s absence,” Niemeyer said.

Koolbeck was unhappy with herself but was glad her teammates stepped up to help with her watching.

“I was extremely mad with myself but from the bench I tried to keep them up,” Koolbeck said. “Everyone stepped up to keep it close and make it easier for us to control the second half.”

Junior Dani Stromert stepped up as the only upperclassman on the floor and controlled the game for the J-Hawks as they kept the deficit at three points going into halftime.

“It was nice to see the young girls do well. We will need them the rest of the year,” Niemeyer said. “And Stromert, she just plays 300 percent all the time.”

“Dani did a good job as the lone upperclassman in the game to keep the game and team in control,” Koolbeck added.

River Queens leading scorer Larissa Brewer, who stands 6-foot-3, scored 12points in the first half but was held to just two in the second half. Koolbeck and Jonas locked down the middle.

“We didn’t make any adjustments,” Niemeyer said on slowing Brewer. “Koolbeck playing the whole (second) half made a difference and Jonas really helped.”

“Defensively it was a team effort,” Koolbeck added. “Kylie Jonas did a great job playing big and the team worked together.”

The J-Hawk guards combined for 11 steals, most of which came late and helped Jefferson get a big come from behind win.

“You could predict and read where the passes were going to go,” Blietz said. “By the second half I started to anticipate to get steals.”

The J-Hawks go to fifth-ranked Xavier on Monday for a tough conference game that tips off at 6:30 p.m.

JEFFERSON (69): Maddy Blietz 9 4-4 22, Dani Stromert 3 3-4 9, Kylie Jonas 3 0-0 6, Maddie Koolbeck 10 6-8 26, Kieley Brathwaite 1 2-2 4, Hannah Towns 1 0-0 2, Molly Evans 0 0-0 0, Sara Eggers 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 15-18 69.

CLINTON (43): Erin Wenzel 1 2-4 4, Karly Schneeberger 4 1-1 13, Mallory Horner 2 0-1 5, Paige Barsema 0 0-0 0, Keirstyn Davis 1 2-2 5, Jordan Nelson 0 2-2 2, Julie Rutenbeck 0 0-0 0, Shannon Shovlain 0 0-0 0, Alexis Dickinson 0 0-0 0, Brittney Ackermann 0 0-0 0, Katie Schimerowski 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 7-11 43.

Halftime – Clinton 27, Jefferson 24. 3 point goals – Jefferson 0, Clinton 6 (Schneeberger 4, Horner, Davis). Total Fouls – Jefferson 12 Clinton 19.