John Bruce, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
PIKETON – After being forced to the bench for most of the first three quarters while in foul trouble, Paint Valley’s Kendall Dye knew she had to maintain her focus to make an impact in the fourth.
CREDIT: Cory Hall/SOSA
That’s exactly what she did.
The senior scored 10 of her game-high 12 points in a decisive final frame to help boost her Bearcats (9-3, 4-3 SVC) to a 40-28 road win over Piketon.
“I just knew I needed to play hard,” Dye said. “That’s even when I wasn’t in my normal guarding position. I needed to help in other actions that we were getting beat on. I think my energy on defense really helped my energy on offense. That really helps me get going on the offensive end.”
In a matchup between two gritty, defensive-minded teams, fans expected a low-scoring battle that would come down to the final minutes. However, it didn’t appear the Bearcats caught that memo in the opening minutes.
On the first possession of the evening, Paint Valley’s Averi McFadden canned a triple from the top of the key to start the scoring. The Bearcats brought the defensive intensity in the early going, forcing five Redstreak turnovers in the first four minutes, leading to easy baskets for McFadden and Bella Stauffer on the other end.
Stauffer drained a corner 3 to push the Bearcats’ lead to 10-0 in the early minutes.
“I’ve put a lot of work in. Anyone who knows me knows that I really haven’t been a good shooter in the past,” Stauffer said. “So I’m really happy that I’ve gotten to the point where I can be confident in my shot and know that it’s going to go in when I shoot it.”
But the Redstreaks (9-3, 4-3 SVC) eventually found their footing after a layup by Abrial Johnson got them on the board. In fact, the ‘Streaks finished the stanza on a 5-0 run, capped by a nice post move from Natalie Cooper and a free throw from Kennedy Jenkins.
In the second, both teams were ice cold to begin.
A Kendall Dye layup provided the game’s only points in the first four minutes.
There was a lengthy break at the 3:43 mark of the quarter after Paint Valley senior Kara Free went down with an injury after drawing a foul.
“Kara is our big hype man,” Dye said. “If you’ve seen her on the bench, she always has high energy. She’s been a really important part of our team this year. I really hope [the injury] didn’t end her season or anything. She’s definitely a big part of our team. We’ll miss her energy.”
Following the break, Piketon started to claw its way back into the contest as Jenkins scored before junior Laney Brown converted back-to-back interior shots to bring the ‘Streaks to within 15-12 at the break.
PHOTOS: Images from Paint Valley’s win over Piketon
Late in the first half, both Kendall and Karris Dye each picked up their third fouls of the game, which loomed large in the third quarter. The Dye sisters were then whistled for their fourth foul of the contest before the five-minute mark of the third, putting the Bearcats at a massive disadvantage inside.
The Redstreaks immediately took advantage of that with baskets from Cooper, Jenkins and Jazz Lamerson, as they finally took their first lead of the game at 18-17 about halfway through the quarter.
After the teams traded baskets, Stauffer drained her second trey of the night to give the Bearcats a 23-22 lead, one that they didn’t relinquish. A free throw from Mackenna Heath then gave Paint Valley a 24-22 advantage after three quarters.
As the Dye sisters returned the contest to begin the fourth, PV coach Tristan Norman drew up a set to get Kendall an open look from the corner. That shot hit nothing but the bottom of the net for a four-point lead.
On the other end of the court, Kendall attempted to take a charge from Cooper, which could have easily been her final foul with seven minutes to play. However, the senior got her feet set and took the contact, earning the charge call and boosting the Bearcats’ energy even more.
After multiple empty possessions, the ‘Streaks were able to cut the lead back to three. But Dye connected with McFadden at the top of the key and the senior calmly buried her second 3-pointer of the game to make it a six-point lead.
With 1:36 to play, McFadden found Dye in the corner, where the senior tickled the twine for her second triple in the quarter to ultimately put the game away. As a final topper, Dye went 4-for-4 from the free throw line to close out the scoring for the Bearcats.
“We had a big [holiday] break, so we were ready for this game,” McFadden said. “I think that getting off to a hot start was kind of the real kicker. It was like, ‘Hey, we’re here to play and you better be ready to fight back.'”
Kendall Dye led the Bearcats in scoring with 12 points alongside six rebounds and two assists while McFadden followed with 11 points, five boards and four helpers. Stauffer also reached double-digit scoring figures, tallying 10 points of her own.
The Redstreaks were led by Cooper with 10 points and 11 rebounds while Jenkins finished with eight points.
Piketon will attempt to bounce back on Thursday, hosting Eastern, while Paint Valley gets back after it on Saturday, traveling to undefeated Unioto.
“We need to play to our speed of the game,” McFadden said. “We want to speed [Unioto] up on offense and when it’s time for us to play offense, we can run our plays and play at our tempo.”
BOX SCORE
Paint Valley: 10-5-9-16 — 40
Piketon: 5-7-10-6 — 28
Paint Valley: 13-36 FG, 8-14 FT, 6-19 3pt., 22 rebounds (Ka. Dye 7), 22 turnovers, 10 assists (McFadden 4). Scoring: Ke. Dye 12, McFadden 11, Stauffer 10, Ka. Dye 4, Heath 3.
Piketon: 10-33 FG, 8-17 FT, 0-8 3pt., 23 rebounds (Cooper 11), 24 turnovers, 4 assists (Jenkins 2, Lamerson 2). Scoring: Cooper 10, Jenkins 8, Brown 4, Lamerson 3, Ab. Johnson 2, Ad. Johnson 1.
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