January 7, 2017 at 6:45 a.m.
Strong in second
Patriots pull away to defeat Bluffton
Strong in second
BLUFFTON — For 16 minutes, it looked as if the Patriots were going to be in a dogfight with the host Tigers.
Each team led by no more than four points.
But as the game turned to the second half, the Patriots left their struggles in the locker room.
The Tigers just couldn’t keep up.
Britlyn Dues scored 12 of her 16 points in the second half and the Jay County High School girls basketball team held Bluffton to just four points in the third quarter Friday in defeating the Tigers 53-36.
“After having a first half like that, we weren’t doing bad, we just weren’t finishing,” said Dues, a senior. “I think we were just not mentally there.”
So during intermission, Dues said coach Kirk Comer told the team he believed they were the better team and Jay County (9-7, 4-1 Allen County Athletic Conference) just needed to believe it and play to its capability.
“I felt like we all listened to what he said and took it to heart and really came out strong,” Dues added.
Taylor Homan, who led all players with 17 points, and Dues especially took heed to Comer’s advice.
Jay County led 22-21 at halftime despite its poor shooting performance, and back-to-back Homan buckets pushed the advantage to 26-22. Bluffton (9-8, 3-2 ACAC) split a pair of free throws before Dues drove to the basket for layups on consecutive possessions to put her team on top 30-22.
Each team led by no more than four points.
But as the game turned to the second half, the Patriots left their struggles in the locker room.
The Tigers just couldn’t keep up.
Britlyn Dues scored 12 of her 16 points in the second half and the Jay County High School girls basketball team held Bluffton to just four points in the third quarter Friday in defeating the Tigers 53-36.
“After having a first half like that, we weren’t doing bad, we just weren’t finishing,” said Dues, a senior. “I think we were just not mentally there.”
So during intermission, Dues said coach Kirk Comer told the team he believed they were the better team and Jay County (9-7, 4-1 Allen County Athletic Conference) just needed to believe it and play to its capability.
“I felt like we all listened to what he said and took it to heart and really came out strong,” Dues added.
Taylor Homan, who led all players with 17 points, and Dues especially took heed to Comer’s advice.
Jay County led 22-21 at halftime despite its poor shooting performance, and back-to-back Homan buckets pushed the advantage to 26-22. Bluffton (9-8, 3-2 ACAC) split a pair of free throws before Dues drove to the basket for layups on consecutive possessions to put her team on top 30-22.
Gabrielle Streveler hit a 3-pointer from the left wing to trim Bluffton’s deficit to five points with slightly more than five minutes to play. Jay County, however, went on a 9-0 run that carried over to the first possession of the fourth quarter.
“We tried to get the ball in the paint more and got better shots,” said Comer, whose team moves into a tie with South Adams and Woodlan for first place in the ACAC. “Therefore we shot a better percentage.”
Dues had a lot to do with the scoring in the paint, as she drove the left baseline for a hoop to kick off the streak of nine consecutive points. Gwen Omstead hit two free throws and Dues once again drove the baseline for two points.
“At the start of the second half coach let me know I was quicker than most of them so I took that into consideration,” said Dues, who scored half of her points in the third quarter. “Every time I got the ball I looked to drive, which is one of my strengths. When I did get around my man I looked to finish and I was finishing my shots.”
The Tigers simply didn’t have an answer for the forward.
“She attacked the rim,” Comer said. “We thought she could really exploit her man. We tried to go one-on-one with her as much as we could and I thought she did a really good job of taking the ball to the hole.”
Homan sank two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter around a basket by Bluffton’s Jamie Myers. The first put Jay County ahead by 14, and the second pushed the lead to 15. A pair of free throws and another bucket in the paint from Dues extended the advantage to 46-27, the biggest of the night for the Patriots.
In the opening half, neither team was able to get a stronghold on the game. The score was tied 9-9 after the first quarter before baskets by Dues and Homan made it 13-9 Jay County. Bluffton’s Zoey Pearson — she led the Tigers with 14 points — swished a 3-pointer from the left wing and converted two free throws before a Grace Miller triple made it 17-13 in favor of the home team.
Free throws from Omstead and Hanna Ault, as well as a baseline jumper from Briana Muhlenkamp, tied it at 17-all until Jamie Myers made two shots from the charity stripe for Bluffton’s last lead of the game.
“I thought we were hurrying,” Comer said of the Patriots’ shot selection in the first half. “We were trying to get them to go fast, trying to get them to turn the ball over and it got us going a little too fast. We’ve got to slow down and get under control when we have the ball.”
Ault was third for the Patriots with nine points
Jay County, which is the two-time defending tournament champion, begins its title defense Tuesday at Heritage. Bluffton hosts South Adams, with the winners to meet in the semifinal on Friday at either Jay County or Heritage.
Junior varsity
Jay County got off to a strong start and kept the offensive pressure throughout in a 43-25 victory over Bluffton.
The Patriots (16-3) outscored the Tigers 15-1 in the opening quarter and led 25-8 at halftime. An 11-5 margin in the third quarter helped the visitors extend the advantage to 36-13 heading to the fourth quarter.
Freshman Mikele Suman led Jay County with eight points. Macey Weitzel, Hallie Fields and Kendra Muhlenkamp tallied six points apiece, and Hanna Dillon chipped in five points. Sam Twigg and Claire Dirksen had four points each, while Hannah Phillips and Kendal Garringer both finished with two points.
“We tried to get the ball in the paint more and got better shots,” said Comer, whose team moves into a tie with South Adams and Woodlan for first place in the ACAC. “Therefore we shot a better percentage.”
Dues had a lot to do with the scoring in the paint, as she drove the left baseline for a hoop to kick off the streak of nine consecutive points. Gwen Omstead hit two free throws and Dues once again drove the baseline for two points.
“At the start of the second half coach let me know I was quicker than most of them so I took that into consideration,” said Dues, who scored half of her points in the third quarter. “Every time I got the ball I looked to drive, which is one of my strengths. When I did get around my man I looked to finish and I was finishing my shots.”
The Tigers simply didn’t have an answer for the forward.
“She attacked the rim,” Comer said. “We thought she could really exploit her man. We tried to go one-on-one with her as much as we could and I thought she did a really good job of taking the ball to the hole.”
Homan sank two 3-pointers in the fourth quarter around a basket by Bluffton’s Jamie Myers. The first put Jay County ahead by 14, and the second pushed the lead to 15. A pair of free throws and another bucket in the paint from Dues extended the advantage to 46-27, the biggest of the night for the Patriots.
In the opening half, neither team was able to get a stronghold on the game. The score was tied 9-9 after the first quarter before baskets by Dues and Homan made it 13-9 Jay County. Bluffton’s Zoey Pearson — she led the Tigers with 14 points — swished a 3-pointer from the left wing and converted two free throws before a Grace Miller triple made it 17-13 in favor of the home team.
Free throws from Omstead and Hanna Ault, as well as a baseline jumper from Briana Muhlenkamp, tied it at 17-all until Jamie Myers made two shots from the charity stripe for Bluffton’s last lead of the game.
“I thought we were hurrying,” Comer said of the Patriots’ shot selection in the first half. “We were trying to get them to go fast, trying to get them to turn the ball over and it got us going a little too fast. We’ve got to slow down and get under control when we have the ball.”
Ault was third for the Patriots with nine points
Jay County, which is the two-time defending tournament champion, begins its title defense Tuesday at Heritage. Bluffton hosts South Adams, with the winners to meet in the semifinal on Friday at either Jay County or Heritage.
Junior varsity
Jay County got off to a strong start and kept the offensive pressure throughout in a 43-25 victory over Bluffton.
The Patriots (16-3) outscored the Tigers 15-1 in the opening quarter and led 25-8 at halftime. An 11-5 margin in the third quarter helped the visitors extend the advantage to 36-13 heading to the fourth quarter.
Freshman Mikele Suman led Jay County with eight points. Macey Weitzel, Hallie Fields and Kendra Muhlenkamp tallied six points apiece, and Hanna Dillon chipped in five points. Sam Twigg and Claire Dirksen had four points each, while Hannah Phillips and Kendal Garringer both finished with two points.
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