.jpg)
Continuing to struggle against the defensive press, the Rockbridge County High School girls basketball team suffered three lopsided Valley District losses last week, suffering home losses to Spotswood last Tuesday and East Rockingham last Wednesday before falling at Turner Ashby on Friday.
The Wildcats (2-19 overall, 1-10 district) ended the week on a fourgame losing streak.
In their 67-21 loss to Spotswood (15-5, 9-1) the Wildcats made the game only slightly closer than their 70-16 road loss to the Trailblazers on Jan. 5.
In the rematch, the Trailblazers hit five of their six 3-pointers in the first quarter. Spotswood led 11-0 before RC freshman guard Des Butler, who was moved into the starting lineup, stole the ball and made a layup for the Wildcats’ first two points. The Blazers continued to shoot well from outside and took a 28-2 lead into the second quarter.
Emma Clark hit the Wildcats’ only 3-pointer in the second quarter, but Spotswood didn’t cool down much, taking a 48-10 lead into halftime.
The Wildcats played better defense in the third quarter, as each team scored just six points. Freshman center Ruby Goodhart made a pair of inside baskets at the end of the quarter to cut the Blazers’ lead to 54-16.
With reserves playing in the fourth quarter and a running clock because the lead was 30 points or more, Spotswood maintained its large lead to end the game.
Giving the Blazers credit for their perennial success as one of the state’s elite teams, RC head coach Darrell Plogger said, “They’ve got the program established, and they just keep filling in the blanks.”
The Blazers were missing three starters, but Plogger said, “They don’t miss a beat. They just keep plugging.”
Goodhart led the Wildcats with eight points and 12 rebounds. “She just keeps getting better by the day, and she just keeps after it,” said Plogger of Goodhart. “She’s going to be a really good player.”
Brooklyn Beverly added five points and a steal for RC. Butler chipped in four points and two assists. Plogger praised both players for playing hard as they stepped into the starting lineup.
Clark had three points, and Natalie Samante-Asunción scored one point, Parker Dameron grabbed four rebounds, and Abby Bouchard had a block and three rebounds.
RC committed 26 turnovers, while Spotswood had just six.
ER 51, RC 22
Unable to break the defensive press, the Wildcats lost 51-22 at home against East Rockingham on Wednesday night in Lexington.
The Eagles, who had beaten RC 52-24 in the teams’ previous meeting on Dec. 15 in Elkton, capitalized on 27 turnovers by the Wildcats. East Rockingham (12-10, 6-6) had just 10 turnovers.
ER shot well from beyond the arc, hitting eight 3-pointers, six in the first half, while Butler made the Wildcats’ only 3-pointer.
The Eagles took a 10-2 lead by the end of the first quarter and made four 3-pointers in the second quarter to extend their lead to 33-11 by halftime.
In the third quarter, the Eagles cooled down, but they increased their advantage to 42-17 going into the final quarter and maintained their large lead for the rest of the game.
Izzy Knorr led ER with 19 points, scoring 16 points in the first half and making five 3-pointers in the game.
Goodhart paced the Wildcats with 10 points, while Butler and Beverly each chipped in three points.
Reviewing the game, Plogger said it was the same story as the first time the teams met. “We just cannot crack the press,” he said.
On defense, Plogger said, “We’re not getting enough pressure on the ball. We’ve got to get back to the basics and get back to man-toman and get out of the zone.”
TA 48, RC 15
TA cruised to a 48-15 win over the Wildcats to clinch a share of the Valley District title on Friday night in Bridgewater.
Raevin Washington, TA’s 6-foot-5-inch center, led the Knights (19-2, 11-0) with 16 points, four rebounds, four blocks, three assists and three steals. Brynne Gerber added seven points for the Knights, who were scheduled to travel to Spotswood last night to try to win the district title outright.
TA, which had beaten RC 52-12 on Jan. 10 in Lexington, had no trouble in the rematch, taking an 11-6 lead after the first quarter and keeping the Wildcats scoreless over the next two quarters to go up 37-6 by the end of the third quarter.
Clark led the Wildcats with eight points and grabbed three rebounds, Sadie Moore added three points and six boards, and Goodhart led RC with seven rebounds and had two points. Bella Dorey chipped in two points and four rebounds, and Dameron grabbed five boards.
RC committed 23 turnovers. The Wildcats were scheduled to conclude the season at home last night against William Monroe. A story on that game, with a season wrap-up, will be in next week’s newspaper.
