Weiser girls take big win over Fruitland

 The Lady Wolverines traveled to the home of the Fruitland Grizzlies last week for a league pairing with all of the Wolverines present and accounted for on the hardwood. 

 Weiser bested the Grizzlies on their home court in grand fashion, 69-53, making the Wolverines undefeated in the Snake River Valley Conference, to-date.

 From the starting tip it was evident that the Wolverines would be playing a fast-paced game. With mere seconds off the clock and a Wolverine foul, questions arose as to whether the added speed will result in foul trouble for the Wolverines.  

 However, despite the early foul and a pair of missed scoring opportunities from the free throw line by the Grizzlies, the Wolverines regrouped quickly and were on the board first with a basket from beyond the arc by Ivy Morris.  Another Wolverine foul allowed the Grizzlies to score a point but impressive ball movement and another long ball from three-point land by Tobie Noyer had the Wolverines leading 6-1.  

 Fruitland countered with a three-point bucket but quick feet and every Wolverine seeing the court and working together resulted in a basket from the top of the key by Noyer. A beautiful series of five passes on the run and a shot from Maddie Erickson over her defender, all within a 10-second timeframe, pulled the Wolverines ahead 10-4.  

 Mattie Shirts was big on the boards for the Lady Wolverines during the first quarter but a rough bit of ball handling allowed the Grizzlies a pair of baskets to pull within two-points at 10-8.  

 Shirts made a nice move inside for two and Erickson followed with a long basket on the baseline for a 14-8 lead.  Morris added another three-point bucket to her credit for a 17-10 lead but a series of picked off passes and fast break opportunities resulted in a pair of lay-ups for the Grizzlies minimizing the Wolverines’ lead 17-14 at the end of the first period.

 The Grizzlies wasted no time in the second quarter scoring a basket with mere seconds off the clock and narrowing the scoring gap to only 12-points. Morris was having none of it and launched another bullet from behind the arc for a 20-16 lead. 

 Noyer stepped to the line for an easy pair of free throws but Fruitland countered with a lay-up. Morris attempted to add to her tally of threes but her attempt was slightly off the mark.  A rebound and a fade-away jumper from Noyer worked just as well.  

 The Wolverines were working hard on the boards and not letting up on their offense and in the next two minutes outscored the Grizzlies eight to four for a 31-23 lead.  

 The last three minutes of the first half was a flurry of possession changes either from turnovers or shots.  The Wolverines led the Grizzlies at one point by 10-points but several driving opportunities in the paint by the Grizzlies had the Wolverines leading by six-points, 40-34 at half-time.

 The third quarter was every bit as fast paced as the first half and the Wolverines showed no hint of slowing up the pace.  Fighting for every rebound and fastbreak, the Wolverines continued to put points on the board and held the Grizzlies scoreless for over five minutes of the period.  

 Leading by 15-points, 49-34, the Grizzlies finally managed to counter the Wolverines’ 9-0 scoring run with a pair of free throws. The Grizzlies also had a three-point basket and a shot inside the paint but the Wolverines maintained their lead and headed into the final period 51-41 over the Grizzlies.  

 The Grizzlies chipped away at the Wolverines’ lead with four-points from the free throw line and a pair of baskets from the field to pull within four-points to 53-49 but the Wolverines found their groove again midway through the final period and with baskets from beyond the arc from Noyer, Morris and Macy Maloney, seven successful free throws and a basket from Shirts at the top of the key the Wolverines held their lead throughout the entire game and took the win 69-53.

 Erickson led the Lady Wolverines with 19-points, followed closely by Morris with 18-points, including five three-pointers.  Noyer was the third Lady Wolverine scoring in double digits with 15-points.  Shirts added nine-points while Maloney and Jenifer Juarez had five-points and three-points, respectively.