ST.JOHN’S-Something had to give on Thursday night at St.John’s high school,as the Blue Jays and Fort Jennings looked to snap a losing skid. St.John’s used a big quarter, in an enroute to their first win of the season, as they defeated the Musketeers 34-30.
“It’s our first win for us,and it was a big part of our focus tonight,” said St.John’s head coach Nate Stant. “It’s about growing and developing,as our underclassmen have been doing a great job at practice all year long.”
It was a low scoring quarter by both teams, as points were hard to come by. The Blue Jays got their points from downtown, as Emma Will and Kierstyn Klaus gave the hosts an early 6-0 advantage. Fort Jennings cracked the scoreboard late in the quarter on a basket by Rachel Von Sossan.
Fort Jennings responded in the second quarter, and they were able to gain the advantage at halftime. A three pointer by Lydia Dickman cut the deficit to 6-5, and a basket by Hannah Grote gave the visitors their first lead at 7-6. Abby Koester was able to split a pair from the foul line to extend the lead to two, at 8-6. The Musketeers were able to shut out the Blue Jays in the period.
The scoring picked up in the third quarter, as the lead changed hands back, and forth. A pair of free throws from Will cut the deficit to 10-8, and her bucket was able to tie the game at 10 per side. Will also hit a pair of free throws to get the lead back at 12-10. Fort Jennings was able to tie the game at 14 after a free throw from Carley Von Sossan, and a three pointer from Rachel Von Sossan.
Abby Kerner hit a pair of free throws to give the hosts a 16-14 advantage, but Rachel Von Sossan came back with a three pointer to lead 17-16. Kerner hit two more from the foul line to lead 18-17.
“We have talked about this all year about defending at a varsity level, and for us to be able to make plays down the stretch was cool to see,” Stant said.
The action came right down to the wire in the final quarter, as both teams gave it their all. A shot from Will from downtown gave the hosts their biggest lead of five, at 21-16, but a basket by Grote cut the deficit to 21-18. Fort Jennings had a lead of 24-23, but momentum changed as a breakaway layup from Will, and the foul extended the lead to 26-24, and it forced a Fort Jennings timeout.
A three pointer by Kerner extended the lead to five, at 29-24, and a free throw from Will extended the lead to 30-24. Fort Jennings didn’t back down as a bucket from Maggie Pothast cut the deficit to 30-26. Klaus was sent to the foul line, and buried both free throws to get the lead back to six at 32-26.
Another Pothast basket cut it to 32-28, and a timeout called by the visitors. Kerner was able to hit her foul shots with 27 secs left to extend the lead to 34-28, but Pothast reached the point total once again, with a basket to cut it to 34-30. The Musketeers did get the ball with little time, but the clock ran out, as the Blue Jays celebrated their first win of the season.
St.John’s improves to 1-10, and will be in action on Tuesday when they visit the Paulding Panthers. Fort Jennings drops to 1-9, and will be back in action on the same night to visit Elida.
“Coach O’Connor does a great job at Fort Jennings, as they mix it up defensively, and made it very tough on us to score,” Stant said. It’s a good feeling to get a win, and now it’s about trying to get another one.”
Fort Jennings 2 – 6 – 9 – 13 – 30
St.John’s 6 – 0 – 12 – 16 – 34
Fort Jennings (30)
Rachel Von Sossan (13) Maggie Pothast (8) Hannah Grote (4) Lydia Dickman (3) Carly Von Sossan (1) Abby Koester (1)
St.John’s (34)
Emma Will (16) Abby Kerner (9) Kierstyn Klaus (7) Brooke Altonburger (2)
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