JOHNSTOWN – The North Country CC Lady Saints, ranked #3 in Region 3, defeated the #5-ranked Lady Raiders 81-61 on Wednesday evening. The FM squad had hoped to avenge their mid-January loss at NCCC, but that did not happen.
The Lady Raiders have typically been a good shooting team, but on Wednesday they just could not find their scoring touch. FM connected on only 26% of their shots in two-point range, while their guests had a good night from the floor.
Photo: Stephanie Rice drives the baseline – Rice led FM in scoring with 19 points
The Lady Saints jumped out to a 14-5 lead after nine minutes of play, but then the Lady Raiders staged a comeback. Stephanie Rice sank four free throws. Radasha Pope drained a three-pointer from the left side. Silvia Vasquez Rivera added a three, and, in a span of just under two minutes, North Country's lead had been trimmed to 16-15.
Two more free throws and another three-pointer by Rice gave FM a 27-22 lead with 4:40 left in the first half, but the Saints sprinted and forged a 35-33 lead at the break.
The visitors then pulled away and outscored FM 46-28 in the second 20 minutes.
Freshman Vasquez Rivera had a strong offensive game, scoring five points in the first half and seven in the second. She and Rice were the only Lady Raiders who scored in double figures.
Photo: Silvia Vasquez Rivera drives and scores in second-half action
The Lady Raiders have now lost two games in a row after having won seven consecutive contests. They have just two games left in the regular season: Hudson Valley will visit FM for a 5:00 game next Wednesday, February 18. The following night, FM will travel to Plattsburgh to play Clinton CC.
C.J. Bonny, website writer
Scoring:
NCCC: Fountain 6-1-13, Roberts 5-1-14, LaPage 1-0-3, Boyea 4-3-13, Burgess 1-0-2, Smith 4-8-17, Bridges 0-2-2, Barnes 4-1-9, Fletcher 3-2-8; Totals 28-18-81
Three-point goals: 7 (Roberts 3, LaPage, Boyea 2, Smith)
FMCC: Vasquez Rivera 5-0-12, Pope 2-3-9, Woney 0-4-4, Richard 1-2-4, Rice 4-8-19, Redwood 3-1-7, Boyer 2-2-6; Totals 17-20-61
Halftime: NCCC 35 – FMCC 33
Records: NCCC 19-2 (10-2), FMCC 16-7 (10-4)
.
