Aberdeen gets big night from Marley Kendall, knocks off Rockland

ROCKLAND — Led by a massive performance from junior point guard Marley Kendall, the Aberdeen Tigers went into Rockland Tuesday night and earned a victory, their first of the season, over the reigning state champion Bulldogs.

While the defense was stingy from the onset, Aberdeen’s offense through the first 16 minutes was heavily dependent upon Kendall, who scored 10 of her team’s 18 first-half points. Head coach Andrew Jolley said after the game that his team made a few adjustments during the break, and things came together nicely as the Tigers (1-2, 0-0) pulled away for the 46-39 victory.

“Rockland’s a really good team, but the girls kept their composure and played a really good second half. A win against a good team is always nice,” Jolley told EastIdahoSports.com.

Aberdeen’s offense may not have been running on all cylinders in the first half, but neither was Rockland’s. The Bulldogs (2-2, 0-0) were unable to capitalize, and only led at the break on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from sophomore Whitley Ralphs, giving the home team a 21-18 advantage at the midway point.

Rockland, who dominated the 1A classification last season, lost three key pieces from last year’s run — all All-State performers — to graduation. The especially young squad was led offensively Tuesday night by a freshman, Mahana Hatch. Hatch finished the game with 13 points, eight rebounds and two steals.

But like her teammates, offense was easier to come by in the first half. Without 2024-25 Player of the Year Calyn Permann running the show, and Alexa Permann and Sydney Freeman inside to clean up messes, Rockland relied on creating run-out opportunities.

Head coach Jordan Black used a motion inbound several times to get the ball to sophomore point guard Brilee Steidley into the open court and already on the move. That action created several clean looks and buckets.

Jolley and the Tigers, however, adjusted how they played inbound passes in the second half, all but taking that action away.

“Just a simple adjustment at halftime, and thankfully it worked for us,” he said.

In half-court sets, the Bulldogs had trouble creating open looks, while Kendall and her teammates jumped ball handlers and interrupted passing lanes, turning defense into offense.

Kendall finished with a game-high 26 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, and added five rebounds. But Jolley was quick to point out the work she and her teammates did on the other end to create easy buckets.

“The nice thing is, Marley’s always going to be very strong offensively, but she creates a lot of havoc on defense, and that doesn’t get noticed as much,” he said.

Kendall recorded nine steals on the night, and said after the game that her defense is something on which she has focused.

“I’ve been trying to implement my defense more and work on it. I know I can score,” she said.

Aberdeen’s victory comes after the Tigers suffered a pair of double-digit losses to start the season, and Jolley is hopeful the win can help right the ship for his team.

“Any time we can come into Rockland and get a win, we’re happy and proud about it,” he said. “We just work on what we work on, and make sure that we’re focused and disciplined to our rules, on defense and offense, and good things will come.”

Kendall and the Tigers will be back in action at next week’s Ririe Tournament. Hatch and the Bulldogs will be back sooner from Thanksgiving break, when they travel to Hansen to take on the Huskies on Tuesday.