By Lori Brown
GRAHAMSVILLE — January 31, 2006 – The visiting Sullivan West Lady Bulldogs defeated the Tri-Valley Lady Bears 67-27 Friday night in a non-league basketball game.
With its 40-point victory, SW now has a record of 9-2 this season. With the loss, T-V fell to 2-12 on the year.
SW built a 13-point lead in the first quarter and continued to pull further away from the Lady Bears. At halftime, the Lady Bulldogs enjoyed a commanding 44-11 advantage.
Following the intermission, SW continued its scoring streak by adding another 13 points in the third period. T-V scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, but that was not enough to cut into SW’s lead.
T-V Coach Karen Furman commented that SW “has a good team.”
“Their defense put a lot of pressure on us, which caused us to have a lot of turnovers,” she said.
Senior guard Maria Jeltsch was the Lady Bears’ top scorer. She recorded eight points in the contest.
“My team kept their focus in the first half and they were a little ragged in the second half, but I am very pleased with their effort,” SW Coach Ron Bernhardt said.
He added that the girls’ minds were on the Burke game that is coming up, but “they did not lose their concentration during this game.”
“Tri-Valley fought hard [tonight],” Bernhardt added.
The veteran hoops coach also commented about how SW senior center April Ackermann grabbed rebounds and made good passes throughout the game.
“She was on fire,” Bernhardt said of Ackermann, who scored a game-high 28 points.
Kate Fanning added eight points for the Lady Bulldogs.
Bernhardt noted that SW freshman center/forward Rachel Houghtaling “had [some] good rebounds this game.”
Note: The Burke game to which Bernhardt alluded to is tonight’s Orange County Interscholastic Athletic Association (OCIAA) Division IV showdown between the Lady Bulldogs and the John S. Burke Catholic School Lady Eagles. That contest is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at the SW High School in Lake Huntington.