MORRISDALE — The first win of the season felt jubilant for the Curwensville Lady Tide, so much so they were ready to double it up and get another in the next game. It meant having to go to Morrisdale to slow down the West Branch Lady Warriors, and all-time leading scorer Jenna Mertz.
Initially, neither team held an advantage, and Curwensville felt as though they had a chance. Then, the Lady Warriors roared to life, and made it a short night for the visitors, handing the Lady Tide a 47-22 loss.
The opening quarter maybe had jitters from both sides of the ball, because neither really showed their true potential. In fact, it ended similar to how it started, tied up, but with eight points each on the board. The second quarter, however, is when the Lady Warriors showed what they could do. In the stanza, the squad would put up a game-high 24 points, all while limiting Curwensville to just a pair of buckets. The 32-12 advantage heading into halftime was more than enough to hold off any comeback.
The running clock went into effect during the third quarter, as West Branch rushed out to a 43-15 lead heading into the final eight minutes.
Wertz finished with a game-high 20 points for the Warriors, with Sarah Guglielmi adding in another 15. West Branch would finish the night not making a free throw, but only had two opportunities at the line the entire night. For Curwensville, Natalie Wischuck finished with a team-high seven points.
The 2023-2024 season for Curwensville (1-20) will draw to a close on Wednesday night when they play host to the Lady Bison of Clearfield. Tip-off is at 6:30 p.m. with no junior varsity contest prior.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Curwensville 8 4 3 7 – 22
West Branch 8 24 11 4 – 47
Curwensville – 22
Addison Butler 1 0-0 2, Brooklynn Price 0 1-4 1, Maddie Sheredy 0 0-0 0, Natalie Wischuck 2 2-2 7, Jovee Elensky 1 0-0 2, Ava Hainsey 0 0-0 0, Addison Warren 0 0-0 0, Jayda Gaul 0 0-0 0, Briah Peoples 3 0-0 6, Janelle Passmore 2 0-0 4. TOTALS 9 3-6 22.
West Branch – 47
Ally Shingledecker 0 0-0 0, Jamica Horsey 0 0-0 0, Sarah Guglielmi 7 0-0 15, Tate Swatsworth 0 0-0 0, Jenna Mertz 8 0-0 20, Brooke Bainey 0 0-2 0, Erin Godin 2 0-0 4, Lily Williams 1 0-0 2, Irelyn Briscoe 1 0-0 2, Alexa Prestash 3 0-0 6, Isabella Kerfoot 0 0-0 0, Montana Williams 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 21 0-2 47.