HYDE — On Thursday, head coach Joey Castagnolo commented that his Lady Bisons of Clearfield were learning as a team, but were getting more confident with each passing game. Even with a loss, they gained momentum in the final minutes, which he believed would carry over into the next contest.
His girls didn’t have long to recover as they were back at it on the hardwood Friday night as they hosted the Lady Beavers of DuBois. The game stated out close, and was physical for the entire 32 minutes of play.
Clearfield held the lead early, and kept it close in the first two quarters of play. But, Castagnolo’s team fell behind early in the third quarter and never recovered as the Lady Beavers won the game 53-42.
But, Castagnolo was still all smiles at the end of the game.
“I’m just so proud of the girls. We really do work hard, and that showed tonight,” Castagnolo said.
His team worked hard, but also had to fight through a major setback. Early in the second quarter, point guard Lisa Ambuski, who led the team in assists in Thursday’s game against Central Mountain, took a hard block by a DuBois player and fell to the court. DuBois scored the basket, but Ambuski did not get up from the court, grimacing to the point of tears as she clutched her ankle. Once standing up, she had to be assisted off the court, not being able to put any pressure on her left foot.
Trainers put a splint on her, and she was able to walk to the locker room at halftime, but would not return, finishing with only two points and two assists.
Brittany Renaud would take Ambuski’s place for the remainder of the game, and Castagnolo was proud of how she performed.
“When Lisa went down, we knew we were in a tough spot. Brittney did a fine job for me, especially considering she usually practices with the second team,” Castagnolo said. “She doesn’t get a lot of time with the starters, so we were learning as we played.”
Ambuski getting hurt wasn’t the major issue in the loss according to Castagnolo; it was more about his team getting out of sync. At the end of the first quarter, Clearfield held an eight-point advantage, but lost it midway through the second quarter. Still, heading into halftime, the Lady Bisons were only down seven points, and would come out from the locker room with possession.
However, the third quarter was sluggish as DuBois put up quick points thanks to Samantha Kirk. She hit three shots near the baseline, scoring seven of her nine points in the quarter. At the same time, both Lindsay Obremski and Casey Wilcox stepped up their game in the final 16 minutes, combining for 10 points and 13 rebounds.
“We just got out of sync after halftime. They [Dubois] made a nice adjustment to our defense, and it led to those shots,” Castagnolo said.
Two players were in double digits for Clearfield, as Brianna Peters scored 14 points, while Dakota Farmery added 13 points and 11 rebounds. Farmery has scored a double-double in every game thus far this season.
Castagnolo also praised his wing, Rachel Thompson, who had eight points and six assists.
DuBois also won the junior varsity game by holding on in the final seconds for a final of 37-34.
Castagnolo wasn’t looking at the record of his team, but looked at the progress made from the beginning of the season to where they are now.
“I’m awfully proud of the kids. We passed the ball very well, made smart plays, and are getting more confidence. I’m really happy with them,” Castagnolo said.
Clearfield (1-7) will travel to Indian Valley on Tuesday night.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Dubois 6 19 15 13 53
Clearfield 14 9 10 9 42
DUBOIS 53
LaBue 0 0-0 0, Kirk 4 0-0 9, Wallock 2 2-2 8, D. LaBrasca 0 0-0 0, C. Labrasca 0 0-0 0, Fairman 1 3-4 5, Maholtz 1 0-0 2, Watson 2 0-0 6, Stuart 0 0-0 0, Randolph 0 0-0 0, Oswalt 0 0-0 0, Obremski 5 3-4 13, Wilcox 5 0-0 10. Totals 20 8-10 53
CLEARFIELD 42
Ryan 0 0-0 0, Butler 1 0-0 2, Renaud 0 1-2 1, Ambuski 1 0-0 2, Thompson 4 0-0 8, Marsh 1 0-0 2, Peters 7 0-2 14, Sheeder 0 0-0 0, Farmery 6 1-2 13. Totals 23 2-6 42
GAME STATISTICS
Field Goals Made/Attempted: DB-20/53 CF-23/51
Team Rebounds: DB-25 CF-23
Team Fouls: DB-12 CF-13
Turnovers: DB-14 CF-19
Three-Point Shots: DB-Kirk, Wallock (2), Watson (2) CF-None
| Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| 12/15 | HUNTINGDON | 67 – 89 | 0 – 1 |
| 12/17 | CENTRAL | 36 – 54 | 0 – 2 |
| 12/20 | @ Punxsutawney | 48 – 57 | 0 – 3 |
| 12/22 | @ Tyrone | 36 – 63 | 0 – 4 |
| 12/28 | CURWENSVILLE | 60 – 29 | 1 – 4 |
| 01/04 | @ Philipsburg | 45 – 53 | 1 – 5 |
| 01/06 | CENTRAL MOUNTAIN | 48 – 57 | 1 – 6 |
| 01/07 | DUBOIS | 42 – 53 | 1 – 7 |
| 01/11 | @ Indian Valley |