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CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Trinity Christian and Charleston Catholic were virtually locked in the first half, but the Irish were able to pull ahead in the second, while speeding up the Warriors (4-1), to win, 49-39.
Freshman Jenna Barnett led the Warriors with 11 points in the loss, while Charleston Catholic had three girls in double digits: Sydney Bolles (19), Hannah Rahin (14) and Claire Mullen (12).
The Warriors shot 35 % from the floor (14 of 40) and 52% from the free throw line (9 of 17). Turnovers hurt Trinity, giving up 19.
“Charleston Catholic did a good job of speeding us up and not allowing us to get in our offense,” TCS coach Mike Baldy said. “We have a lot of young girls that haven’t played in a game of that speed yet. We’re all still learning, and we’ll bounce back better as a team because of this.”
The Warriors return to action on Monday at Elkins.
Clay-Battelle defeats Valley-Wetzel 43-29
The Clay-Battelle girls continue to roll, picking up their fourth win over Valley-Wetzel, 43-29.
Clay-Battelle swamped Valley in the first three quarters, 41-18, but slowed things down in the fourth and only registered two points.
Liv Ammons paced the Cee-Bees (4-1) with 19 points, while Ronda Petrucci added 10 in the win.
“For three days in a row, [our] starters have had a chance to get rest late in some games and keep their legs fresh for a continued fight in this fast-moving season,” C-B coach David Joyce said. “We are continuing to live with game speed growth and instruction with limited practice ability between games.”
Addison Brown netted 16 points for Valley in the loss.
The Cee-Bees pick back up on Monday at Doddridge County. Tip is set for 7 p.m.
Preston defeats Washington 56-35
One day after shaking the rust off in a loss to University, Preston overcame a first-half deficit to defeat Washington in Charles Town, 56-35.
After battling back to within one at the half, PHS stormed out of the gate in the second half to outpace the Patriots 36-15.
Michelle Thomas once again led the Knights (2-1) with 19 points, one shy of Friday night. Izabela Stahl and Carsynn Sines each added 11 to round out the double-digit scoring.
“Great team pressure defense in a hard fought game,” PHS coach Brian Miller said. “They outsized us at every position but our speed and pressure took over in the second half and wore them down.”
Preston returns to action Monday at Bridgeport.
Boys’ basketball
University defeats Beckley 83-62
The Hawks secured win No. 2 with 19-point win over Woodrow Wilson, defeating the Eagles, 83-62.
The two teams were knotted at 12 after the first quarter, but UHS (2-0) got the edge in the second stanza, outscoring Beckley 23-16 to hold a 35-28 lead at the half. From there, the lid hardly closed for the Hawks as they closed out the game outpacing the host 48-34.
Ryan Niceler led the Hawks with 19 points, while Blake Barkley secured a double-double 17 points and 10 boards. Jaeden Hammack came off the bench to score 14 points, Garrison Kisner added 13 and Aaron Forbes tacked on 10 to round out the double-digit scorers. Further, UHS only committed seven turnovers against Woodrow Wilson’s full court pressure.
Wrestling
University finishes No. 3 at WSAZ Tournament
The UHS wrestling team finished 3rd in the WSAZ Tournament at Huntington High behind a pair of top-ranked teams, 3A Parkersburg South and 2A Point Pleasant.
Still, two Hawks won their weight class championships, Dom Parker (138) and Dakota Hagedorn (170). Parker defeated two-time state champion Braden Johnson from Parkersburg South in the finals 5-2. Hagedorn defeated No. 1 Jude Childers of Parkersburg South 9-2 in the finals.
Also placing for UHS were Luca Felix (132, 2nd), Corbin Turney (285, 2nd), Elijah Wellings-Osha (160, 3rd), Mason Pauley (145, 4th), and Matt Bakos (152, 4th).
University returns to the mat at rival Morgantown High Tuesday at 6 p.m.
Middle school basketball
Central Preston 8s 53, Taylor County 22: Jared Haskiell scored 20 points and Chayce Adams added 15 for the Wildcats (4-0). McCray Blackwell led Taylor County with 9 points.
Suncrest 8s 49, Mountaineer Middle 46: Brady Savage led Suncrest (3-0), with 12, Marty Johnson added 11 and Akir Johnson chipped in with 10.
Suncrest 7s 20, Mountaineer Middle 55: Carson Street led Suncrest (1-2) with 6 and Max Frey led Mountaineer with 9.
