The Battle Mountain High School girls basketball team handily defeated the North Tahoe Lakers this past Friday. On Saturday, the contest against Incline required overtime to decide the winner.
On Friday, Dec. 15, the BMHS ladies basketball team outscored the North Tahoe Lakers 24-1 in the first quarter and did not allow the Lakers to score more than 10 points in a quarter in the contest. The Longhorns defeated the Lakers by a final score of 67-18.
Grace Melver, who leads the team in scoring this season, averaging 10.7 points per game, helped the Lady Longhorns build the lead against the Lakers with her sharp shooting. The ladies of Battle Mountain allowed only six points scored against them in the first half. The Longhorns victory extended the teams record to 7-3 overall and 1-0 in league play.
There were four players in double figures, as Sruti Bhakta led the way with 12 points, 10 assist and six steals. Melver also scored 12 points and Drue Domagala and Isabella DeAllah each had 10 points.
“We were able to get a lot of players a lot of playing time,” said BMHS head coach Paul Tremayne.
On Saturday, Dec. 16, the Lady Longhorns and Incline were caught in a heated battle to earn the win. The first quarter ended with an 18-18 tie. The Lady Longhorns were able to gain an eight-point lead after holding the Highlanders to three points in the second quarter.
The third quarter belonged to Incline, with a strong showing from Highlander guard Sami Giangreco. She cashed in on 7-of-18 shooting, totaling 18 points in the game. Incline's strong second half helped them tie the game at the end of regulation.
Overtime was needed to decide the game and Battle Mountain executed the game plan to perfection. Once the Lady Longhorns recaptured the lead, they ran their offense with the intent to run as much clock as possible. The attack worked and Incline was put into bad defensive position causing them to foul the Longhorn shooters. The Lady Longhorns won the game in overtime, outscoring Incline 7-5 in the extra period, bringing the final score to 55-53.
Melver led the way with 12 points and five rebounds. She was 5-of-7 from the free throw line. Paige Ripley finished with a double, including 11 points and 10 rebounds. DeAllah had 10 points and Bhakta added five points and 10 assists.
“The girls did a good job of battling all night,” Tremayne said. We fell behind early but led by six to nine points most of the way. Incline had one girl get hot. We did a nice job of making clutch free throws. We went 17-for-25 for the game. It was a big league win for us. Back at it right after the holiday with Wendover and White Pine.”
The win brings the Lady Longhorns their second northern 2A league win in two days. The Longhorns girls were in Eureka for a non-league match-up on Tuesday. Results were not available at press time.
Battle Mountain returns to Northern 2A action on Friday, Jan. 5, in West Wendover at 6 p.m. The road trip concludes on Saturday, Jan. 6, in White Pine at 2 p.m.
