PHOTOS BY JACOB KESSLER / THE VILLAGE REPORTER
BRYAN FRESHMAN … Averyann Fisher glides in for a bucket in the first half of Bryan’s league opener at Archbold.
DOUBLE-DOUBLE … Archbold’s Charlee Forward handles the ball against the Bryan defense. Forward record a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds in the Bluestreak win.
By: Nate Calvin
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
sports@thevillagereporter.com
ARCHBOLD (January 3, 2025) – Archbold freshman Klaire Kern scored six of the Streaks eight points in overtime as Archbold rallied from nine down in the third quarter for a 58-54 win over Bryan.
“This was a huge league win; it was a must win to stay in the league race”, commented Archbold head coach Brian Zeigler.
Bryan started the game quickly as sharpshooter Josey Arnold buried a triple to open the scoring and after a bucket by Piper Hanna, the Bears had a 9-4 lead.
Archbold responded with an 11-4 run to end the first as Miley Gericke went 3/4 at the free throw line and Kern and Grace Meyer nailed treys to give Archbold a 15-11 lead.
Early in the second, Gericke would score twice, and Charlee Forward added a field goal to push the lead to 21-16.
Bryan freshman Averyann Fisher then started a 7-0 spurt by Bryan with a basket and two free throws before Arnold buried a deep three from the volleyball line, her third of the half, to put Bryan back on top at 23-21.
Archbold retook the lead with a quick five points as Kern went 2/2 at the line and Meyer canned her second triple of the night to give Archbold the lead at 26-23.
The Streaks increased their lead to 29-25 but a driving layup from Hanna cut the lead to 29-27 at halftime.
A 10-3 run by Bryan opened the second half starting with a Gabby Mossburg triple to put Bryan back on top, 30-29.
The run continued with a Fisher bucket, a long ball from Amiyah Langham and two more Fisher field goals as the lead ballooned to 39-30.
A bucket by Forward to close the third cut the Bryan lead to 39-33 and was Archbold’s only field goal of the third as they went 1/10 from the floor in the quarter.
Four points from Fisher in the fourth quarter helped Bryan push the lead to 43-35 before field goals by Gericke and Makena Thiel trimmed the lead to 43-39.
Archbold capped off their 10-2 run to tie the game with a stick back by Forward, a score in the lane by Gericke, and Reagan Wendt scored off a Bryan turnover to tie the game at 45 with 4:05 remaining.
Following a timeout, Langham drained a three from the left wing to give Bryan a 48-45 lead.
The Streaks used the foul line to battle back as Gericke was 1/2 and Forward went 4/4 to put the Bluestreaks in front 50-48 with 48.6 left in regulation.
After an Archbold miss, Fisher would go coast-to-coast for a bucket to tie the game at 50-50 with 38.0 left and after empty possessions by each team, the game headed to overtime.
Kern scored Archbold’s first four points of the extra session as she hit a foul line extended jumper and then scored from the low square for a 54-50 lead at the 2:54 mark.
After a Bryan timeout, Langham went 2/2 at the charity stripe and Hanna knocked down a shot from the foul line to tie the game at 54 apiece.
The last four points of the game would go to the Streaks as Gericke scored in the lane with 45.0 to go and Kern hit a pair of free throws with 7.2 to go to seal the win.
“We were able to contain Arnold, but Fisher had a nice game”, said Zeigler when talking about keys to the win.
“I thought Charlee and Miley stepped up big for us in the fourth quarter to climb us back into the game with both scoring and rebounding.”
Forward posted a double-double for Archbold with 14 points and 11 rebounds, Gericke added 14 points and Kern finished with 11.
Fisher was the lone Golden Bear in double figures with a game-high 22.
BRYAN (54) – Mason 0; Langham 9; Mossburg 5; Hanna 8; Fisher 22; Thiel 0; Arnold 9; Vollmer 1; Totals: 13-6-10 – 54
ARCHBOLD (58) – Pedraza 2; Forward 14; Kinsman 0; Thiel 4; Gericke 14; Wendt 7; Meyer 6; Kern 11; Totals: 17-3-15 – 58
BHS 11 16 12 11 4 – 54
AHS 15 14 4 17 8 – 58
Junior Varsity: Bryan, 31-16
GAME STATISTICS
BRYAN: FG – 19/54 (35%); FT – 10/14 (71%); Rebounds – 28 (10 offensive); Turnovers – 23; ARCHBOLD: FG – 20/45 (44%); FT – 15/21 (71%); Rebounds – 31 (7 offensive); Turnovers – 26