Payette girls get past HSB
Six games in, Lady Pirates match 2006-2007 win total
By Ray Rodriguez
Argus Observer
Tuesday, November 27, 2007 11:57 AM PST
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| ray rodriguez | Argus observer
Payette’s Shelbi King (left) looks for an open teammate while Horseshoe Bend’s Jessica Duran defends during Monday’s non-league girls basketball game in Payette. King scored eight points in the game and the Lady Pirates defeated the Mustangs 45-30. |
Payette — Just six games into the 2007-08 season and the Payette girls basketball team has matched its win total from a year ago.
Monday, the Pirates used a 29-14 second run and coasted to an easy 45-30 win over Horseshoe Bend in non-league basketball action in Payette.
“The main thing is they’re learning how to play with a lead and that’s important,” Payette head coach John Kowatsch said. “Three wins is nice, but we really haven’t beaten a strong team yet. We still have a lot of work to do.”
After fighting to a 16-16 draw through one half of play, the Payette defense clamped down and the offense started to click.
Payette’s Shelbi King capped a 10-0 run with a jumper and the Pirates were up 26-16 with two minutes left in the third quarter.
The Mustangs stopped the bleeding with a free throw, before the Pirates ended the quarter with a jumper by Hailey Schmidt and a rebound and putback by Kaytlin Oxnam to give the Pirates a 30-17 cushion.
The Mustangs started the final stanza on a 11-5 run and cut the lead to 35-28 with three minutes left in the game before Payette finished things off with another 10-0 run.
Tiffany Kaiser drained two free throws and a layup, Schmidt added back-to-back buckets and Oxnam capped the run with a rebound and a putback.
The Pirates controlled the glass, holding a 34-18 rebound advantage and the defense chalked up 21 steals.
Schmidt finished with a team-leading 10 points, eight rebounds and six steals, while Oxnam chipped in six points and six rebounds.
“Hailey Schmidt, she played great,” Kowatsch said. “She gets a lot of looks at the basket. This is her first year in varsity and those shots will fall as the season goes on.”
Payette point guard Cass Gross kept herself out of foul troubles and also had an all-around game with eight points, five rebounds and four steals.
Payette had its struggles from the field, hitting on a 19-of-71 shots and went 7-of-13 from the charity stripe.
