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Tonight, was a Freshman showcase in North Ridgeville, ironically enough on Senior night. The Comets have shown improvement all season and tonight was perhaps their best effort. Sadly, for them however, the best freshman on the court was wearing the opposing jersey.
North Ridgeville Ranger Freshman Grace Kingery lit it up like the Fourth of July by scoring 26 points, and nailing 6 from beyond the three-point line in a narrow 52-49 defeat.
It was a game that will give Amherst confidence for weeks to come, and a game that proved North Ridgeville is coached well enough to overcome adversity. The best from both of these teams is still on the way as the season grows, they will grow.
Another Freshman making her presence felt for the Rangers tonight was Brooke Lime with 4 points. The Seniors for the Rangers, Becca Bradley and Madyson Rosado combined for 10. The Rangers were playing without one of their top scorers in the dangerous Daylan Baker, but were helped out by a total team effort and players stepping up. One of which is Taylor Traut who had 6 and continues to show a lot of potential herself. Traut is a Junior, and her best basketball days are still ahead of her.
For Amherst, it was a pair of Freshmen doing the damage on their end. An amazing night by Kristen Kelley saw her put up 19 points. She made 8 shots, and went 3 of 3 from the charity stripe. Kelley is already 5 foot 10 inches tall and only a Freshman. She knows how to use her size and get to the hole. She will become a force in the SWC.
Kayla Ferancy looked every bit as good for the Comets. Ferancy sunk 9 shots on her way to 18 points. The fact that the Comets do not rely on the long ball to put up points is huge. When they eventually incorporate that part into their game, watch out.
Other Freshmen’s scoring for the Comets were Peyton Roberts with 4, Bradyn Silvasy had 2 and Ava Darmos had 2.
It was a tight game that saw both teams play their best early and often. Amherst had perhaps their best quarter of the season by scoring 17 in the first, to take a 17-11 lead after one. Ferancy had 6 and Keley had 9 to pace the Comets while Kingery was held to 3 for the Rangers.
North Ridgeville would battle back with a vengeance in the second, scoring 18 on the strength of 10 from Kingery. Grace did a little bit of everything, sinking two from the foul line, two from beyond the three-point arc, and scoring a field goal as well. Amherst didn’t exactly cool off as Kelley scored 6 more of the Comets 14 total quarter points. The Comets held a 31-29 lead at the half.
The Comets would begin to come back down to the Earth in the third quarter as they were held to just 12 points. Kingery used the quarter to continue to shine, scoring 10 more while draining a pair of three pointers. It was part of a 15-12 quarter for the Rangers that saw them take a slim 44 – 43 lead into the final quarter.
Senior Maddy Rosado scored five points in a tight fourth quarter to seal the deal for the Rangers 52-49. Her 5 combined with another 3 ball from Kingery was enough to do it, as they accounted for all 8 Ranger points.
