(December 19th, 2014) – PIONEER: It was a 17 point third quarter that allowed the visiting Lady Eagles to pull away from their hometown counterparts.
Hosting the Fayette girls were the Lady Eagles of North Central. Despite a great effort by the girls from Pioneer, the more eastern based Eagles proved to have too much firepower for them to combat. Fayette won air superiority over North Central, 50-32.
By the end of the first quarter, Fayette held a 14-7 lead. North Central came out in the second period with a more determined defense, which held the other Lady Eagles to just 8 points in that span. However, they couldn’t muster a strong offensive outing of their own, which left them trailing 22-13 at the half.
The girls of Fayette exploded for 17 points in the third quarter. This is when Taylor Griffiths started to build some momentum to her game, nailing two three-point shots, which complimented another three-pointer by Hannah Machalek. Not being able to match the elevated scoring pace, North Central found themselves in a 39-21 deficit going into the fourth quarter.
The hosting Eagles finally found their offense in that final period of play. Junior Cady VanDeVoorde, who had been struggling all night against the Fayette defense, was able to score off the dribble drive and her mid-range game. Leading scorer Sabrina Pickford earned a couple of tough inside field goals, as well as some trips to the free throw line. This resurgence wasn’t enough, though, as Fayette was able to match their 11 point output to end the contest with an 18 point victory.
Pickford was the top scorer in the game, regardless of team, with 15 points. The North Central senior made nearly half of those points from the free throw line, going 7 for 8 on extra points. Fellow senior Rachel Oxender amassed 7 points in the game. VanDeVoorde had 4 points on the night.
North Central was able to keep the high scoring duo of Griffiths and Kaela Seiler well under their usual levels of production. Still, the former put up 14 points, powered by 3 successful shots fro beyond the arc. Seiler, with a pair of threes in the first stanza, totaled 9 points in the game. Yet Alexis Fruchey stepped up to fill the scoring void, earning 12 points thanks, in large part, to 5 two-point field goals.
Fayette is extremely difficult to beat. So many different players have the potential to score, and their athleticism makes their defense a fierce one. North Central was able to defend them pretty well, but their own offense just couldn’t get into a rhythm.