Lady Indians still perfect, boys get a win
By Nick Corn
St. Paul took a pair of victories over the Indians of Oswego on Tuesday night in their respective Three Rivers League varsity showdowns. The girls earned a dominant 25-point victory to remain undefeated, led by 15 points from Josie Albertini. Brenden Doherty and Chandler Struthers led the St. Paul boys with 17 points apiece to win their fourth game in their last five tries.
Holly Hutcherson contributed eight points in the Lady Indians quest for an undefeated season on Tuesday night. St. Paul rolled Oswego 61-36. PHOTO BY ASHTON WOOD
Lady Indians remain perfect
St. Paul opened the with two 17-point quarters while allowing Oswego just 18 first-half points to hold a comfortable halftime advantage. Sydney Rice opened the night with a triple to get St. Paul rolling, and Jordyn Tucked paced the Lady Indians with another trey and seven first-quarter points. An Oswego triple cut St. Paul’s advantage to 5-4 in the early going, but it would be the home team that took a 17-9 lead after one.
After a scoreless first eight minutes, Albertini found her offensive game in the second quarter and led the attack with seven points. Holly Hutcherson added four on a pair of field goals. Oswego squandered several chances to cut the lead at the charity stripe, converting on just 3-9 free throws. St. Paul led by 16 at the half.
The offenses slowed in the third quarter, but St. Paul used a balanced attack to control the game. Four Lady Indians converted from the field for two points, and Albertini found a pair of baskets in St. Paul’s 12-point third quarter. Oswego made just one field goal, but shot an improved 5-8 from the free-throw line.
With a 46-25 lead heading into the fourth, the contest was never in question for the final eight minutes. Albertini and Katelin O’Brien paced the St. Paul offense with four points apiece, and the Lady Indians cruised to a 61-36 victory.
Albertini’s 15 points led the Lady Indians, but O’Brien and Tuck added 11 apiece. Rice found double digit scoring with 10 points.
The win propelled St. Paul to 17-0 on the season, and cemented their spot in the driver’s seat for a Three Rivers League title.
Dominate second half spurs St. Paul victory
St. Paul struggled offensively in the first half of Tuesday’s matchup, but a pair of Noah Winter triples may have kept the Indians close enough to pull ahead down the stretch. Winter accounted for six of the 10 points St. Paul mustered in the first quarter, and Oswego held an 11-10 lead after one.
Noah Winter (L) and the St. Paul Indians got one step closer to evening their record on Tuesday night. The Indians used a dominant second half, erasing an eleven point deficit to beat Oswego and improve to 8-9 on the season. PHOTO BY ASHTON WOOD
Brenden Doherty matched his first-quarter performance, sinking a pair of free throws in the second, but the Indians would score just two more points on a Struthers’ field goal. Oswego improved on their offensive success with 14 points in the second, and they led 25-14 at intermission.
St. Paul found their mojo in the 10-minute locker room break, and they put it on display in the second half. Doherty hit a pair of trifectas and two free throws to pace the Indians with eight points. Struthers converted for three the hard way, and picked up two more buckets for seven points. St. Paul outscored Oswego 21-12 to put the away team on the hot seat. After leading by 11 at halftime, Oswego’s lead was cut to two before the fourth quarter.
St. Paul’s offense remained red-hot in the final quarter, scoring 22 points. Struthers spurred the offense with eight points, while Doherty and Braven Born scored five apiece. Born matched a third-quarter trey with another in the fourth, and converted both attempts from the charity stripe. Oswego scored just 12 points, and the Indians of St. Paul took the 57-49 victory.
Behind Doherty and Struthers’ 17-point performances, Born added nine and Winter scored eight points for the Indians.
The win drew the Indians closer to even, as they now sit at 8-9 overall. St. Paul is seemingly playing their best basketball when you need to, and their lone loss in their last five games came in the form of a two-point overtime loss to Jayhawk-Linn.
Both teams continue play on Monday when they travel to Galena.
SP Lady Indians 61, Oswego 36
1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q FINAL
SPHS 17 17 12 15 61
OHS 9 9 7 11 36
St. Paul: Albertini 15, O’Brien 11, Tuck 11, S. Rice 10, Hutcherson 8, Gahman 3, Winter 2, R. Rice 1
3-PT FG: Gahman, S. Rice, Tuck
St. Paul 57, Oswego 49
1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q FINAL
SPHS 10 4 21 22 57
OHS 11 14 12 12 49
St. Paul: Doherty 17, Struthers 17, Born 9, Winter 8, McCracken 5, Albertini 1
3-PT FG: Born 2, Doherty 2, Winter 2