Lehi Sports
Falcon Girls Basketball grinds out tough region win over Pioneers
Jennifer Thomas | Lehi Free Press
Skyridge rallied in the third quarter, snatching a narrow win from Lehi in a hard-fought Region 3 girls basketball contest. The Falcons outscored the Pioneers 16-11 during a strong third quarter performance to give them the edge. Despite intense competition from both teams, Skyridge leveraged home-court advantage to seal the 49-46 victory.
“Every time we play Skyridge it is intense, when you have a rivalry game like this, every player brings their best effort. We came out and started really well tonight, then Skyridge pushed it back and took the lead,” said Lehi Head Coach Sean Seastrand. I am proud of my girls for bringing it back to a point where we had a chance to take the game, but the last 10 seconds ended with Skyridge making a bucket and we had to play from behind and we didn’t execute and turned it over.”
Hallee Sheffield and Lily Grant led Falcon scoring with 14 points each. Kayah Perkins and Elena Chiara contributed scoring with five points each. Grant’s four three-pointers were crucial in the Skyridge victory.
The Falcons managed the Pioneer’s momentum with lockdown defense including 10 rebounds by Arianne Moeai and Chiara totaling nine rebounds and three assists. Abby Dotson’s two blocks and two assists effectively neutralized Lehi’s momentum.
“It is always really fun and an intense game when we play Lehi. This one was exciting and down-to-the wire,” said Shaylee Nielsen, Skyridge Head Coach. “I am really proud of this team because we talked about how it will come down to being more gritty and tough. We are evenly matched with Lehi and they are well-coached. The girls played gritty tonight, and I’m proud of their full effort.”
Relentless play by the Pioneers kept Skyridge on their heels from tip-off to final buzzer. Lehi’s Cali Ashton and Madi Andrews each scored 12 points, including two 3-pointers per player. Both Brinley Sorensen and Brynlee Cook played aggressive defense making it difficult for Skyridge to score. Sorensen tallied two rebounds, two assists and a three-pointer to contribute to the scoring. Cook finished with four rebounds, one assist, a steal, and a three-pointer.
“Tonight, the team was relentless, we worked on next play mentality all week and they stuck with that tonight. They did not get down on the sticks, they were tough on the press and just made big plays when they needed to,” said Nielsen.
The Falcons host Corner Canyon on Tuesday, Jan. 20 and continue with region play at home on Friday, Jan. 23 as they take on American Fork.
The Pioneers match up with Lone Peak at home on Tuesday, Jan. 20 and travel to Corner Canyon on Friday, Jan. 23.
