By Lori Brown
GRAHAMSVILLE — January 19, 2010 — The Tri-Valley Lady Bears continue to add victories to their season record.
On Thursday night, T-V defeated the visiting Eldred Lady Yellowjackets, 59-31, in a non-league game.
T-V’s man-to-man press defense was a success as Eldred only recorded four points during the first quarter. Junior forward Meaghan Hazen scored all four of those points for the Lady Yellowjackets.
At the buzzer to end the quarter, T-V’s Kathryn Schneyer made a shot to give her team a 13-4 lead.
During the second period, Eldred (8-2) had some free-throw opportunities, but was unable to score more than four points.
Kelly McNamara scored a basket with just under a second left on the clock to give T-V (9-3) a 27-12 advantage at halftime.
During the third quarter, Jakki Pugh recorded several steals and scored 10 points to help the Lady Bears maintain their lead.
T-V’s Allyson Bowers also helped her team by recording seven points during the quarter.
The Lady Yellowjackets continued trying hard to narrow the T-V advantage as Amanda Busch and Sam Ferguson each swished a 3-point shot during the fourth period.
But Bowers netted four points and teammate Sarah Thielberg scored six points as the Lady Bears maintained their lead in the final quarter.
Pugh led T-V with a game-high 18 points and Bowers finished with 13 points.
Sage Owens paced the Eldred offense with 12 points and Hazen recorded eight points.
“We moved the ball great on offense,” Eldred Coach Frank Kean said. “We struggle up here on this court. In 36 years, we have always struggled.
“Sage Owens had a good game, but they fouled her to keep her from scoring,” he added.
“Tri-Valley is a good, strong team and it is very important [for us] to play up [against a bigger school],” Kean said. “This is where we have to be.”
T-V Coach Andy Taggart noted that “the girls played hard.
“The man pressure bothered them enough, which turned into turnovers,” he said. “We moved the ball well, we played unselfishly and shared the basketball.
“We really played well and it was fun to watch,” Taggart added.
Ironically, the next opponent for both the Lady Bears and Lady Yellowjackets is the Tuxedo Lady Tornadoes.
T-V is scheduled to visit Tuxedo tonight for an Orange County Interscholastic Athletic Association (OCIAA) Division V game.
“We are both leading [the division],” Taggart said. “The winner of this game will have a step up [for the division title].”
Eldred returns to the court tomorrow night, when the team will host Tuxedo in a non-league contest.