The Bobcats (4-6) turned the ball over 26 times against Ames’ pressure defense, including 18 first-half turnovers as the Little Cyclones (6-5) led 16-4 after the first quarter and 31-12 at the halftime horn.

“We knew it was going to be a grind-out game, and it’s been the story of our season where when it’s that physical all game it takes a physical and mental toll,” MHS head coach Brian Murphy said. “And I thought that just really got to us over time.”

Murphy said it didn’t help that he wanted the girls to match that intensity on their defensive end and didn’t feel the Bobcats were afforded the same level of physicality by the game officials, to the extent that three Bobcat starters — Jorja Janssen, Millie Heitmann and Frankie Long — were in foul trouble most of the second half before eventually all fouling out in the fourth quarter.

“That’s a tough thing to look at your team and say that we did something wrong,” Murphy said. “I don’t think it changes the outcome of the game but it changes the morale of the game and turns it from a 20-point game to a 40-point game where you lose the ability to work on things with your team.”

Morgan Hildebrand finished with five points and Heitmann, Janssen and Long scored four points each; Ellie Hughes chipped in two points and added a team-leading nine rebounds.

Ames scored the first 13 points of the game as well as the last 15.

The Bobcats will be put to the test again next week with three games, including a back-to-back on Monday and Tuesday with Cedar Rapids Jefferson and Des Moines North coming to the Roundhouse.

Marshalltown will be seeking an end to a five-game winless streak in the process.

“We know to expect the pressure,” Murphy said. “You’re just relying on some of your leadership to try and get us grounded and like tonight, we had some open shots that didn’t fall early and that can have an effect too. We have a great chance to do that against Jefferson and try to get some early momentum to not fall back again.”

Ames 59, Marshalltown 59

AMES (6-5, 4-0) — Karsyn Pankonen 2 4-4 9, Sophia Hatcher 1 2-4 5, Natalya Deardorff 4 4-8 12, Anisa Percival 2 0-0 5, Victoria Williams 1 0-0 3, Cebilha Kateti 0 0-0 0, Jada Britten 0 0-0 0, Cassidy Wollner 3 0-0 8, Kiley Sodahl 0 0-0 0, Meredith Frandsen 0 2-2 2, Elizabeth Lemer 3 0-0 8, Natalya Singh 3 0-0 7. TOTALS 19 12-18 59.

MARSHALLTOWN (4-6, 0-4) — Kinsley Bowie 0 0-2 0, Millie Heitmann 1 2-6 4, Jorja Janssen 1 2-4 4, Ellie Hughes 1 0-0 2, Frankie Long 2 0-4 4, Niah Lott 0 0-0 0, Mallory Meyeraan 0 0-0 0, Morgan Hilderbrand 2 0-0 5, Mia Aguinaga 0 0-0 0, Rubi Buenrostro 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 7 4-14 19.

AMES 16 15 12 16 — 59

MHS 4 8 7 0 — 19

3-Point Goals–Ames 9 (Wollner 2, Lemer 2, Pankonen, Hatcher, Percival, Williams, Singh), MHS 1 (Hilderbrand). Team Fouls–Ames 15, MHS 18. Fouled Out–Heitmann, Long.