Sports

Stevens gets big win over Merrimack

By Poody Walsh
Correspondent
CLAREMONT — With the score tied at the half, 25-25, Stevens scored the first 10 points of the third quarter and went on to a 54-46 win over Merrimack Valley (Penacook) Friday night in a Division II girls game at the Carr Gymnasium.

“It was the best game we have played all year,” said Stevens coach Ivy Condon of her 4-2 Cardinals. “We really clicked.”

Senior Sydney Miller sparked the third quarter spurt as she had a three-pointer and another hoop on a drive, She also gave her coach a scare with 1:13 to go in the first quarter when she went down hard leading a fast break.

“I said a little prayer at that point said Condon. “And He answered it.”

This was a win against a good Merrimack Valley team that is in the midst of a four-game in five night stretch and has a noon game Saturday at Bishop Brady in Concord. The Pride was also playing without one of its top players, Miah Boucher.

However, Pride coach Bob McNutt was not making excuses, instead rattled off a bunch of reasons why his team fell to 3-3 with the loss.

“We didn’t shoot well and we’re not very tall, ”he said. “And we had far too many turnovers. We’ve got a lot of things to work on.”

And on the subject of shooting well, Stevens was 8-of-9 in the first half and 13-of 16 from the line during the game.”

“We’ve been working on our free throws,” said Condon who had a smile that probably lasted long into the night.

Sophomore Zahna Rice was also a major contributor for the Cardinals. While her 13 points were vital, it was her basket in the closing seconds of the third quarter that was key. With time running out in the period the Pride had taken a big chunk out of the Cardinals 10-point lead, getting the margin to just 40-36. But just before the buzzer went off Rice had a put-back basket in a momentum swing that carried into the fourth quarter where the Cardinals finally pulled away.

Miller also scored in double figures with 14 for the Cardinals who got eight-point games from freshmen Jaci Morin and Alyssa Paquette.

Hayley Kinney, a spark plug guard, had 13 points for the Pride.

Stevens is off until next Friday when it hosts Bow.

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