Girls basketball has rough week on the hardwood

The Outlaws girls basketball squad played a tight game at Elmira on Tuesday, December 4, but just couldn't pull off the win, and had to record the 34-29 loss to the Falcons. Two days later, they suffered a 52-36 loss at home to La Pine.

On Tuesday, Sisters got off to a great start and at the close of the first period held an 11-6 lead. The Falcons chipped away the Outlaws lead in the second quarter and took the lead, but Isabelle Spitler hit a critical three-pointer at the buzzer to end the first half and put the Outlaws on top 19-18.

Sisters went a bit stagnant offensively at the start of the third quarter. They had some good looks at the basket, but weren't able to convert on their shots. The score was even at 24-24 at the end of the third.

With four minutes to go in the contest, Elmira was up by two. They converted a turnover into a four-point lead, and then extended their lead to six. Payden Petterson drilled a shot from behind the arc to cut the lead to three, but Elmira converted on two free throws to beat the Outlaws by five.

Spitler and Petterson each scored nine points in the contest, with Isabelle scoring all her points from behind the arc. Sydney Head recorded six points, and Alexa Stewart and Rylie Reece Morgan combined for five.

Head led the team with 11 rebounds, Petterson grabbed seven, Olivia Hougham tallied five, and Spitler and Meaghan Greaney each had three.

Coach Brittaney Niebergall said, "I thought that collectively as a team we played a solid first half. We had a couple of fourth-quarter turnovers that really hurt us. We did not shoot the ball extremely well, but the girls played hard throughout the entirety of the game. They hung in there and gave themselves a chance to win the game."

Two days later, Sisters lost at home to the Hawks.

Sisters dug themselves into a hole at the start of the game, and after five minutes of play they were down 12-1, and at the close of the period trailed 17-7.

The Outlaws fought back in the second quarter, out-scored the Hawks 14-8, and closed the gap to 25-21 at the half. Spitler and Head led the comeback charge, with Head scoring eight points in the quarter.

In the second half, the Hawks were able to extend their lead and held on for a big win over the Outlaws.

Head led the Outlaws with 15 points, followed by Spitler who scored nine. Petterson recorded six points, and Greaney and Hougham added three points and two points, respectively.

Head grabbed six rebounds in the contest, and Petterson posted four.

"I thought that, despite getting beat, our total game play was much better, and we continue to see improvement by the girls, individually and as a collective team," said Neibergall.

Freshman Payden Petterson said, "This week we just made silly mistakes. We made bad passes, our shots didn't fall, and we struggled with our rebounding. We will definitely work on these things and hopefully get better as the season progresses."

Sisters was to play at home on Tuesday, December 11, in a non-league contest against Burns. They will participate in the Les Schwab Tournament held at Marshfield High School, Thursday through Saturday, December 13-15.