Riders defeat Kalida 30-19, advance to 2-0 on the season
It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.
St. Marys never led through the first three quarters of Tuesday’s non- league home opener against Kalida and made just five field goals in the first half.
But the Roughriders blanked the Wildcats in the final 12:53 as the team drained five field goals in the final 8:47 to come away with a 30-19 victory at Memorial High School.
The Roughriders (2- 0) shot 5-of- 22 overall in the first half and Kalida grabbed eight defensive rebounds compared to St. Marys’ three offensive boards.
“We needed to focus on getting layups and getting open jumpers and we weren’t doing that in the first half very well,” Roughriders coach Jon Burke said. “I credit Kalida’s defense. They are well-coached and well-prepared. They were trapping us really well in the post and we were forcing way too many things.
“So I felt like we were playing defense most of the first half and that’s not where we want to be.”
But the Riders stayed within striking distance and once the Wildcats struggled to find the net, the Riders took over.
Kalida took its biggest lead of the second half on a Grace Klausing bucket with 4:53 remaining in the third quarter — the last time the Wildcats scored in the game.
Noey Ruane responded with a basket, followed by a strong bucket by Haley Felver to close the deficit to two, 19-17 with 3:26 left in the third quarter.
St. Marys turned the ball over three times before Ruane took the ball and drove in for a layup to tie the game with 47.6 seconds left in the third.
That momentum carried over to the final stanza as the Roughriders scored in their first three possessions and five of six overall when Kendall
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Dieringer connected on a triple from the right edge following a Kalida turnover.
Kiley Tennant then scored on the Riders’ next two possessions — each off Kalida turnovers.
The first was a drive- in underhand layup to push the lead to 24-19 and the senior was at the right place at the right time when she scooped up a rebound, drove in and laid the ball into the net for a
26-19 lead.
By then, St. Marys pulled away as Dieringer scored the final four points of the game on a pair of free throws and a basket with 1:02 to culminate the Riders’ 17- 0 run. Helping the Roughriders in their closeout win was scoring off Kalida turnovers to open the fourth quarter by notching seven points courtesy of three miscues.
“I credit Kendall and Noey for stepping
up and playing great defense and they got strong on the boards,” Burke said. “Cora and Laney [Elena Menker], I thought, played a really strong game and Kiley was very physical. She got some strong rebounds when we needed them and she was strong with the ball when she was getting trapped right after a turnover or a rebound.”
The Wildcats finished 0-of-14 after Klausing’s basket with 4:53 remaining in the third quarter and 1-of- 16 in the second half after shooting 6-of-14 in the first half.
“I think we were a little bit fortunate,”
Burke added. “They are a pretty good shooting team and they weren’t hitting from the outside tonight and we were able to get those rebounds. I am proud of our team for holding them to three points in the second half.”
Dieringer led the Roughriders with 10 points, followed by seven from Tennant and six from Ruane.
“Kiley is a unique player,” Burke said of the senior. “She is very athletic and she is a really good shooter. She is strong going to the basket and she is a tough matchup — which helps her on the defensive end too.
“I am really looking forward to seeing what Kiley can do this year.”
The Roughriders also got a win from their junior varsity team on Tuesday with a 36-21 victory. Amelia Ankerman paced the team with 12 points, followed by Reagan Allemeier with five points and Halle Huston with four points.
St. Marys will now enjoy a long layoff since the team’s Western Buckeye League opener against Defiance was rescheduled from Dec. 3 to Dec. 14.
The Roughriders’ next game will be Dec. 5 at home against New Knoxville.