The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Sophomore shines in win
Rocky River’s Julia Potts nets 18 as Pirates win third straight, improve to 5-2 overall
Rocky River continued its winning ways on Dec. 19, beating Elyria, 51-27, thanks to another stellar performance from Julia Potts.
The sophomore scored 18 points in back-to-back games to lead the Pirates (5-2) to a nonconference win and their third straight victory since starting the season 1-2.
Potts got the offense going right away, scoring eight points in the first quarter as Rocky River went on a 14-0 run to start the game before a pair of free throws put Elyria (0-9) on the board with 19 seconds remaining in the quarter.
“I just really put my heart into the game and I just love winning,” Potts said. “I set goals for myself and I like to score a lot.”
Rocky River coach Elaine Robinson noted that a year of varsity experience has given Potts the confidence to run the offense, and the young player has developed a fearless attitude that’s paying off more with each game.
“Offensively she’s really stepped up to be a leader for us,” Robinson said.
“She’s aggressive, she’s relentless, she looks to attack the hoop at all times. She really is right now to the point where she has no fear. She’ll try to take anybody no matter how good of a defender, but she has the mindset that she’s looking to score.”
Elyria struggled to get anything to fall most of the game and was held scoreless from the field through the first eight minutes. The Pioneers made one of 25 shots taken in the first half: a 3-pointer from Taylor Mehl.
A combination of tough defense and poor decision making led to three single-digit quarters for Elyria, and Robinson said the key for her team was to finally start putting in place all the little things that haven’t come as easy with an underclassmenheavy team.
“We’re young but I’ve been really telling our girls that we’re a couple games in now so we don’t get to use the excuse that we’re young anymore,” Robinson said.
“The key to winning tonight was to take smart shots. … I think we did a good job of that and I think we did a great job on the boards tonight. In the second half we got a little worn down but we still kept battling and trying to get those rebounds.”
Rebounding went a long way for the Pirates as six players grabbed at least five boards including a gamehigh seven from Arden Berg and Maria Potts. Julia, Jessica Gadelsayed and Nani Meese added six rebounds and Elaine Heuler had five.
Mehl led Elyria with nine points, Danah Ewing had six and Cora Sanders had five. Angelina Aulisio had a team-high six rebounds.