Lady Outlaws snap losing streak on basketball court

The Lady Outlaws snapped their five-game losing streak with a 48-44 win on the road at Newport on Friday, February 11.

In Friday’s matchup against Newport, both teams started off slow on the offensive end of the court. Payden Petterson hit a shot from behind the arc and Josie Patton scored a bucket, for Sisters’ only points in the first quarter. Newport also struggled to score, and at the end of one the Lady Outlaws held a slim 5-4 advantage.

Petterson hit two more long balls in the second period, and Juhree Kizziar also hit one from behind the arc. Haleigh Froehlich went 4-6 from the charity stripe for Sisters’ 10 points in the quarter. The Cubs’ offense got on track and they scored 17 points to enter the half with a six-point lead.

Sisters continued to drill three-pointers in the third: Petterson hit two long balls and Emma Lutz also hit from behind the arc. The Lady Outlaws outscored the Cubs 18-11, and at the end of the third held a one-point edge over the Cubs with a score of 33-32, holding momentum as teams entered the fourth quarter.

Newport put together an early run in the final period, and the Outlaws found themselves down by six with approximately four minutes left on the clock. Sisters kept their composure and responded with a run of their own. Big plays down the stretch included two three-pointers from Ellie Mayes, which tied the score, and Josie Patton grabbing an offensive rebound and put-back to give the Outlaws a two-point edge.

Both teams failed to score on the next several possessions, and then the Outlaws pressured the Cubs and forced a turnover. Haleigh Froehlich was fouled and went to line. She made both her shots with three seconds left securing the Outlaws’ four-point win.

Seven different players contributed points with Payden Petterson leading the team with 12 points, all of them three-pointers. Petterson also had three steals in the contest. Emma Lutz had her best game of the season with 10 points, including a three-pointer. She went four-for-six from the free-throw line, led the team with eight steals, and dished out three assists.

Haleigh Froehlich had nine points, pulled down six boards, and had three steals. Ellie Mayes scored seven, tallied six rebounds, and had three steals. Josie Patton contributed four points, and Ila Reid and Juhree Kizziar added three points each.

Coach Paul Patton said, “Newport is a team we beat the first time we played them and I think the expectation that we should beat them again led us to feel some pressure and that created anxiety, which affected our play, mainly in missed shots and turnovers. We collected ourselves at halftime and came out strong in the third quarter.”

“Getting this come-from-behind win was a huge boost to the team’s morale and hopefully set us up to play well in our last three games of the season,” added Patton.

Petterson said, “I am super proud of us for really working together as a team, especially toward the end. It came down to the trust we had in one another that we would be smart with the ball, make good passes, play solid defense, and make our shots. That trust definitely showed with the outcome. I felt that it wasn’t just one player who changed the game, but it was all of us coming together and playing for each other that made us win.”

Earlier in the week, on Tuesday, February 8, the Outlaws were hoping to post a win in their game at Sweet Home. In the first round of league play, they were actually ahead going into the final quarter but lost the game at the end. It turned out to be the same scenario this time around, and Sisters had to record the 11-point loss.

Sisters’ game plan was to put a lockdown defender on Sweet Home’s best player, Brooke Burke, who scored 29 points against the Outlaws in their last match- up. Patton told The Nugget they were fairly successful at that, and held her to 16 points. Unfortunately for the Outlaws, the Huskies had a couple of other players step up and score 16 and 12 points.

Patton said, “They just shot the ball a little better than us and we struggled at times to take care of the basketball, which limited our scoring opportunities.”

Freshman Shae Wyland stood out for the Outlaws in her first time as a starter, and led the team in scoring with eight points and three steals.

Josie Patton also had a good game for the Outlaws and led the team with seven rebounds, and scored four points. As always, Patton was a vocal leader on defense.

Ila Reid scored seven points, Payden Petterson scored six, Juhree Kizziar tallied five, and Tatem Cramer added four. Haleigh Froehlich pulled down four rebounds and had two steals.

“The girls competed hard, as always, and showed improvement despite coming up short on the scoreboard,” said Patton.

A bright spot on the night was the JV team’s 52-28 win, highlighted by Dulce Dunham, who scored two baskets, her first points of the season.