CURWENSVILLE — A cold and blustery night could not keep fans, nor competition, from entering Patton Hall on Tuesday night. The Curwensville Lady Tide, hoping to end the losing skid to start the new year, welcomed in the Williamsburg Lady Pirates for some competition on the hardwood. The Lady Pirates came in with low numbers, dressing only six players, and that meant it was an early tip-off, as there would be no junior varsity contest to start the evening.
The early tip meant fans could go home before the temperatures dropped lower, but it also meant the Lady Tide would see an early finish as well. Costly turnovers, overpowering speed, and tough play on the boards gave the Lady Pirates a decisive 73-25 victory, and giving Curwensville a sixth consecutive loss.
It started early, often, and would not let up for Curwensville all night. It was the Lady Tide putting up the first point of the night, a free throw by Alyssa Bakaysa. Shortly after, Williamsburg would take the lead for the first time of the night. Nearly every possession for the visitors led to opportunities at the basket, nearly doubling the shooting output of Curwensville. The Lady Pirates had 82 opportunities at shots, making 33. Those shots came courtesy of some missed passes, errant ball-handling, and sloppy transition play.
Williamsburg held the Lady Tide to just six points in the opening quarter, and only 17 through the first half.
The Lady Pirates saw all five starters put up points, with three of them in double figures. Alya Hileman put up a game-high 24 points, with Jayla Woodruff adding in 21, and Kendal Norris putting up 12. Laney Prough would record the highest output in rebounds on the night, capturing nine, while Woodruff accounted for a six-pack of steals.
The third quarter spelled doom for Curwensville, as they were held to just a single shot in the frame, one of only 11 they made on the night. The Lady Tide only went 11-for-42 from the floor, just barely above 25 percent shooting, while also committing 34 turnovers. The Lady Pirates put up 20 in the frame, which was enough to put the running clock in effect with just over three minutes to go in the third.
Bakaysa led the home squad with 13 points, along with five blocks and eight rebounds. Curwensville’s struggles with turnovers were compounded with more struggles at the foul line, as they would only shoot 1-for-6 at the charity stripe.
In the last six games, all losses, Curwensville has only averaged just above 20 points, with their highest output coming the night prior against Brockway. The Lady Tide have an opportunity on Friday to get back on track, as they will hit the midway point of the season as they take their 3-7 record on the road to face West Branch. There will be a junior varsity game to start the night, tipping off at 6 p.m. with the varsity to follow.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Williamsburg 17 21 20 15 – 73
Curwensville 6 11 2 6 – 25
Williamsburg – 73
Alya Hileman 10 1-1 24, Jayla Woodruff 9 1-4 21, Claire Carper 0 0-0 0, Kendal Norris 6 0-0 12, Jade Carper 4 0-0 8, Laney Prough 4 0-0 8. TOTALS 33 2-5 73.
Curwensville – 25
Alyssa Bakaysa 6 1-2 13, Kyra Henry 1 0-0 3, Austyn Guiher 1 0-2 2, Skylar Pentz 2 0-0 5, Jaiden Weber 1 0-0 2, Savannah Carfley 0 0-0 0, Brooklyn Price 0 0-0 0, Addison Butler 0 0-0 0, Joslynne Freyer 0 0-0 0, Rachelle Anderson 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 11 1-6 25.
GAME STATISTICS
Williamsburg/Curwensville
Shooting: 33-82/11-42
Rebounds: 35/25
Fouls: 7/6
Turnovers: 9/34
Three-Point Shots: Hileman-3, Woodruff-2/Henry, Pentz