By Staff
ELYIRA – With Elyria Christian having Ryland Hawkinson dominating inside the lane and on the boards, they scored a decisive 19-point, 37-28 win over visiting Canton/Galva on Friday.
With the win, the Elyria girls are now 6-2 for the season and riding a five-game win streak as they prep for a road trip to Peabody/Burns on Tuesday.
“This was a good win tonight against a very physical Canton/Galva team,” explained Elyria Christian head coach Greg Fields. “Coach (Brad) Willems really has them playing great defense. We tried to match their intensity on the defensive side, and unfortunately, we got caught out of position which got us into some foul trouble. Overall, I thought we did a good job breaking their press in the second half while we shared the ball well.”
For the Canton/Galva girls, this loss drops them to 4-5 for the season as they get ready to host Burrton on Monday before going on the road to Solomon on Tuesday.
“Our effort and our defense was very good tonight,” noted Canton/Galva head coach Brad Willems. “I am very pleased with those two aspects. Offensively we struggled from the field and the free throw line. While we had good shots and got to the free throw line, we didn’t get the ball to go through the net. Elyria is a very good team and they are well coached. Anytime you play against a team like that you have to score points. Defensively, I believe we did a good enough job to compete, but we need to continue to improve on the offensive end.”
Indeed Canton/Galva struggled shooting as they connected on just 16% of their attempts from the field and only made six-of-twenty-four free throws. Elyria Christian dominated the paint, outrebounding Canton/Galva 30-16 which helped make up for 22 turnovers and 21 personal fouls.
No Canton/Galva player reached double digits as Brecken Pearson led the team in scoring with six points.
For Elyria Christian, Ryland Hawkinson dominated the game as she poured 22 points while securing a double-double in pulling down 10 rebounds.
Elyria Christian coach Fields concluded his post-game reflections by adding, “Ryland (Hawkinson) carried us in scoring as I think she started out with our first nine points. Allie (Stone) did a nice job of controlling the ball while Grace Prescott came off the bench and had the best varsity game of her freshman season. She single handedly broke a very good press and her speed allowed her to get some fast break opportunities as well. I am really excited to see the development of several of our younger players.”
CANTON/GALVA LADY EAGLES at ELYRIA CHRISTIAN LADY EAGLES
SCORING: CANTON/GALVA > 6-5-3-4=18; ELYRIA CHRISTIAN > 12-9-7-9=37.
TEAM STATS: CANTON/GALVA > 2-FGs – 3/19; 3-PTs – 2/14; FTs – 6/24; AST – N/A; REBs – 16; TO – 16; STLs – 4; BLKs – 3; FLs – 13. ELYRIA CHRISTIAN > 2-FGs – 13/25; 3-PTs – 2/9; FTs – 5/7; AST – 11; REBs – 30; TO – 22; STLs – 9; BLKs – 3; FLs – 21.
CANTON/GALVA LEADING SCORERS: Brecken Pearson – 6; Trinity Espinoza – 5; Mimi Craig – 4; Lili Espinoza – 2; Sage Toews – 1.
ELYRIA CHRISTIAN INDIVIDUAL STAT LEADERS: Scoring > Ryland Hawkinson – 22; Grace Prescott – 6; Macy Reiff – 3; Julia Allen – 3; Laney Reiff – 2. 3-Pointers Made > Prescott, M. Reiff – 1. Assists > Allie Stone – 4; M. Reiff, Allen – 2. Rebounds > Ry. Hawkinson – 10; Allen – 7; Stone – 5; Prescott – 3. Steals > Ry. Hawkinson – 3; Prescott, Allen – 2. Blocked Shots > R. Hawkinson – 2.
(The Staff covering McPherson County Activities can be reached by email at crossdovewriter@gmail.com)