UNION 54, CLARION-LIMESTONE 44

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Jan. 28, 2008

RIMERSBURG - Leading by a point with 3:49 to play, Union rolled off the final nine points of the game to hold off a Clarion-Limestone comeback attempt and get a 54-44 win in KSAC-East girls' basketball action Tuesday night in Rimersburg.

The Golden Damsels (14-7 overall, 11-5 KSAC-East) led by 11, 39-28, late in the third quarter and by 10, 41-31, with 7:26 to play but watched Clarion-Limestone (7-13, 6-10) go on a 13-4 run paced by seven points from sophomore Olivia Pinson to get to within a solo tally, 45-44, on two free throws by Ericka Keck with 3:49 left.

But Union scored its next seven points from the free-throw line – the Damsels were 7 of 11 during the stretch from the line – to take a 52-44 lead with 46 seconds left. Torri Smith then put the game into double digits with a layup with 29 seconds left to seal the victory.

Turnovers cost C-L down the stretch with the Lady Lions turning the ball over four times in the final three minutes while also going 0-for-8 from the field and 0-for-2 from the line during the closing minutes.

C-L giveaway were big part of the game, as the Lady Lions had 28 turnovers leading to 25 Union points including 13 third-quarter tallies for the Golden Damsels, who used an 18-9 third-quarter advantage to break open a one-point halftime lead, 21-20.

Freshman Tina Lipps had a monster game for Union with 16 points and 19 rebounds, including 13 offensive rebounds. She added three blocked shots. Lipps was 7 of 14 shooting from the floor and had a double-double (10 points, 10 rebounds) at halftime.

Torri Smith added 16 points, 15 rebounds, four steals and a blocked shot for Union, while Courtney Frederick also had 10 points and five rebounds.

Pinson was the lone C-L player in double figures with 16 points while adding 10 rebounds and five steals. Keck chipped in with nine points and eight rebounds, while Nicole Wieszczyk added eight points and seven rebounds. Jamie Wyatt had six points, four assists and five steals.

 C-L led 12-7 at the end of the first quarter thanks to a 10-4 run to start the game.

The Lady Lions then got the lead up to nine points, 16-7, on a Wieszczyk layup off a Kellie Wyatt pass a minute into the second quarter.

But Union answered with a 10- run behind four points each from Lipps and Frederick to take its first lead of the game, 17-16, with 3:31 left in the first half.

C-L retook the lead 20-17 on two free throws by Pinson and a jumper by Jake Walker, but Lipps scored the final four points off the half for Union to give the Golden Damsels the 21-20 halftime lead.

Union then used a 13-3 run in the third quarter to take its biggest lead of the game,39-28, with 1:03 left in the quarter.

NOTES – Union took an unbelievable 80 shots in the game making just 18 of them (22.5 percent). But while the Golden Damsels couldn’t shoot straight, they sure could rebound outrebounding C-L, which only shot 28.6 percent (14 of 49) itself 66-40 including 37 offensive rebounds. Union scored 23 second-chance points in the game … Union’s win keeps it in a first-place tie for the KSAC-East title with Clarion, although Clarion holds the tiebreaker … Union returns to action Thursday at North Clarion, while C-L is back on the court the same night at Karns City … There was no junior varsity game.