Lady Raiders dominate Clearfield, 60-38

By Kenny Varner Jr.
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Updated: January 16, 2020

By Kenny Varner

BELLEFONTE – Sporting a very strong defensive game all season long, the Bellefonte girls basketball team was looking to strengthening its offensive game as it makes its run into the final half of the season.

Wednesday against Clearfield the Red Raiders did just that as it dominated the Bison the entire way en route to 60-38 victory.

“Its a complete game and something I’ve been looking for all season and I think we did that today,” said Bellefonte coach Marcus Toomer. “It was really nice for them to run the offense and make some shots and make some fantastic defense.”

Unofficially, Bellefonte pulled down 37 boards while four of its players had a 5-plus rebound performance.

The defensive-laden squad also had a sense of swat, blocking six of the Bisons’ shots.

Maddie Tice just missed finishing with a double-double for her team as the early spark plug on offense. She finished with 14 points and eight rebounds as well as a block.

She also posted her team’s three triples in the process.

But it would be Sara DeHaas that led her team in scoring, posting a 16-point effort with eight boards of her own and two blocks.

Teammates Mia Johnson and Emalee Neff also we’re big contributors, both posting 8-point efforts in the win.

But tone of the game would be set in the first quarter as Bellefonte exploded for a 17-point effort while clamping down and allowing the Bison just four points the entire period.

Tice opened the scoring hitting 1-of-2 from the foul line.

After forcing Clearfield into a bad shot, the Red Raiders got the ball and put it into the hands of DeHaas and she did not disappoint, hitting two consecutive buckets, making it a 5-0 run with 5:50 still left in the first.

Clearfield turned the ball over once again and Bellefonte made the most of it as the team worked the ball around the perimeter until they got it to Tice from beyond the arc.

She lifted a soft arcing 3-pointer to put her team in a comfortable spot, 8-0.

Clearfield didn’t score its first point until the 5-minute mark as Tesa Miller got open underneath for the easy bucket.

But on their next trip down the court, the Red Raiders erased the points when Johnson headed in the middle of the key for a quick stop and pop jumper.

Another Bison turnover on the next possession ended in some more points for the Raiders as Tice got the ball once again from beyond the three-point line and hit nothing but net, upping the Bellefonte lead to 13-2.

Coming off the bench, Bellefonte’s Bella Corman made an early statement hitting a runner in the lane and then posting an offensive board on the next possession for four quick points, extending the team’s lead to 17-2 with less than a minute left.

Clearfield scored the last bucket on a long two by Olivia Bender for the period’s last bucket.

With the comfortable 13-point lead going into the second, both team’s started to sizzle in the second period.

But Bellefonte would have the hotter hand of the two pouring in 24 points while Clearfield tallied 16.

Leading the Red Raiders was Neff with six while the Bison got eight from Megan Durandetta.

Durandetta was her team’s leading scorer with 12 while teammate Bender had 10, rounding out the double-digit scorers.

As the two team’s head into the intermission, Bellefonte has a very secure 41-20 lead.

In the third, the Red Raiders once again clamped down its defense on the Bison, allowing only seven points while they were able to post 11 and take a huge 52-27 lead into the fourth quarter.

In the final stanza, Toomer was able to give all off his players some crucial playing time and they did not disappoint as Bellefonte went on for the 22-point victory and a chance to give his starters some crucial rest coming down the stretch.

“I think the JV girls did a fantastic job being able to jump in and play in the game,” said Toomer. “They have been coming along real well with all the practices and things like that and I love seeing their improvement every single day and they definitely showed it today.”

There won’t be too much time to enjoy the victory as the Ted Raiders are back in action Thursday at home against Tyrone.

Bellefonte 60, Clearfield 38

CL 4 16 7 11 – 38

BE 17 24 11 8 – 60

Scoring: Clearfield – Megan Durandetta 5 0-0 12, Emma Hipps 3 2-4 8, Olivia Bender 4 2-2 10, Tesa Miller 2 0-2 4, Alaina Fedder 0 2-2 2, Riley Ryen 0 1-2 1, Kirstie Van Tassel. Totals 15 8-15 38. Bellefonte – Mallorie Smith 2 0-0 4, Lily Gardner 1 0-0 2, Mia Johnson 3 2-2 8, Emalee Neff 3 2-2 8, Maddie Tice 5 1-4 14, Bella Corman 3 0-2 6, Sara DeHaas 6 5-6 16, Taylor Kerr 0 2-2 2. Totals 20 12-18 60.

Played but didn’t play: Clearfield – Lauryn Kitchen 0 0-0 0, Kylie Van Tassel 0 0-0 0. Bellefonte – Angelina Aviles 0 0-0 0, Sydney Hamilton 0 0-0 0, Hana Radas 0 0-0 0, Aleny Kopcha 0 0-0 0.

3-point shots: Clearfield – Durandetta 2. Bellefonte – Tice 3.