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Red Riders Beat Rival Blue Dons

Meeting of rivals was low-scoring, scrappy

Weir’s Sophia Mikula (2) attempts to drive around Madonna defender Andrea Alimario on Thursday night.

WEIRTON — It was a physical, low-scoring, scrappy contest Thursday night on the Ron “Fritz” Williams Court inside Weir High’s Carl Hamill Fieldhouse, and when all was said and done the Red Riders girls’ basketball team came away with a victory over irival Madonna for the first time in quite a while, 40-31.

“For us this is a step in trying to get our basketball program turned around,” Weir coach Rick Stead said. “It was a great win for the girls. I think it has been at least six or seven games with them since we actually won a game with Madonna.

“I’m just excited for the girls. (Madonna) came out wanting to battle and play. It was just a good, physical basketball game and as the old adage goes somebody has to lose.”

The teams combined for six points in the opening eight minutes, and Weir held Madonna to two points in both the first and third quarters.

“My team did not play defense and did not play with intensity,” Madonna coach Rodney Boniti said. “(Weir) was aggressive and kept their foot on the pedal and we played passive until it was too late. When we look at the stat line I think were about 3-for-27 inside the paint.”

The third quarter has been a struggle for the Red Riders (2-3) so far this season, so it was a point of emphasis for the Stead and his club to change that against their rival with a 16-13 halftime lead over the Blue Dons (0-4).

“Usually the third quarter is our Achilles heel,” Stead said. “We told the girls at halftime that we had a lead and we had to change the way we do things. We came out and had a real good third quarter. This is the best we have played defensively since I’ve been here.

With 2:20 to go in the third and Weir on top 19-15 junior Gia Fuscardo went down with an apparent leg injury and did not return. Fuscardo was leading the Red Riders with three assists at the time of her injury, but her absence did not rattle Stead’s club.

“I’m very proud of the team, defense was the key tonight and that is what we need to do,” junior Sophia Mikula said. “Gia is a key part of the team but she told us not to let it bring us down. We just kept working hard out there. I’m glad we got the win as a team and I’m glad I could do my part.”

Mikula led the Red Riders with 11 points, going 5-of-6 from the line, netting three two-point field goals and collecting six rebounds. Bailey Stead drained three three-pointers and finished with 10 points. Isabella Aperfine picked up where Fuscardo left off and finished with a game-high six assists. Junior Trezur Sartor pulled down a game-high 14 rebounds, seven of those coming in the first quarter.

“(Fuscardo) had played a fantastic game up until that point,” Stead said. “I stress to the kids that sometimes you have to rise to the occasion and I think the girls rose to the occasion. Trezur has come a long way in a short time. I think she may have even been cut in middle school. We got her as a freshman and she is an aggressive kid. She is just one of those kids that has a knack to get the basketball.”

Holding a 21-15 lead going to the fourth quarter, Weir used free-throws to put the game away. Taylor Webster came off of the Red Rider bench after Fuscardo’s injury and went 7-of-9 from the line, all in the final eight minutes, to finish with nine points. The Red Riders finished 17-of-25 from the line in the game.

“That was the best we’ve shot free throw wise,” Stead said. “I think we were right around 70 percent and usually as a team we are in the 50’s if we are lucky. Down the stretch Taylor Webster was huge. It made a big difference for us to be able to get fouled, go to the line and make free-throws.

“Any time they got a little momentum we used our free-throws to slow them down.”

Madonna’s efforts were led by Andrea Alimario, who finished the night with 12 points and seven rebounds. Kasey Canei finished with eight points, two assists and six rebounds. Jazzy Melnyk recorded seven points, two assists and a team-high eight boards.

The teams will meet again on January 25th at Madonna High School for the City Championship. Stead is confident his team can make it two in a row in the rivalry in Madonna’s smaller gym.

“I would think it is a confidence booster for us going into that,” he said. “Our court is definitely bigger and we were able to put pressure on them here and force some turnovers. I know they like to use the smaller court to their advantage but I think it may actually help us.”

Boniti thinks his team will be fine in the rematch if they play the way he knows they are capable.

“We are going to go back to the drawing board and figure a few things out,” he said. “I know what this team is capable of doing when we decide to play up to our expectations.”

Game Notes:

Weir won the jayvee contest by a 40-12 margin, led by nine points from Sarah Hudachek. Madonna got five from Addie Backel.

Madonna is back in action Saturday against Caldwell looking for its first win of the season, while Weir hosts Catholic Central on Monday.

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