Hollidaysburg’s Early Momentum Overwhelms Lady Bison
HYDE — After having a strong victory over Mountain League rival P-O to start the week, the Clearfield Lady Bison were ready to keep the momentum rolling into the latter part of the week. That momentum meant having to take on the undefeated Hollidaysburg Lady Golden Tigers in the Bison Gymnasium on Thursday night. Already having lost to them earlier in the year, the task was difficult, but Lady Bison head coach Missy Helsel had the girls ready for tip-off.
Hollidaysburg was just as ready, and quickly showed why they were ready to keep that undefeated record. The Lady Golden Tigers overwhelmed Clearfield in every aspect en route to handing the Lady Bison a 70-32 loss, their ninth on the season, against seven wins.
From the opening tip, the visitors had Clearfield’s number. It began with a quick three-pointer by Sydney Lear mere seconds into the game, which ultimately was the only lead change of the entire night. Clearfield, as much as the squad tried, was overwhelmed because of missed baskets, turnovers, and wasted possessions. After one quarter, Clearfield saw a 20-10 deficit.
The Lady Golden Tigers substituted many times in the second quarter, but it didn’t matter who was in because they again took advantage of miscues. Led by Lear, who finished with a game-high 20 points, Hollidaysburg pushed to a 44-17 advantage at halftime. Lear was backed up in scoring by Bella Vent with 19, and Allison Hatajik with 14. Hatajik led Hollidaysburg on the stat line with eight rebounds plus five steals.
All the while, the Lady Bison would struggle to get the ball in the basket, finishing 12-for-47 from the floor. By contrast, Hollidaysburg finished 30-for-61, while also forcing 27 turnovers.
Clearfield had a better third quarter, but still had trouble finding the basket. Fans and coaches saw some physical play and felt some fouls were not called, as the game began getting chippy, yet did not get out of hand.
The only time the two squads got overly physical was when Clearfield’s Cayleigh Walker had to go to the locker room due to a bloody nose after some contact in the paint.
Hollidaysburg pushed the game to the running clock after three quarters with a 57-26 lead, giving the starters a chance to rest.
For Clearfield, only four players would account for points, with Riley Ryen leading the stat line with nine points. She was backed up with Walker and Hannah Glunt, each accounting for eight points, while Mia Helsel finished with seven.
In the junior varsity contest, it was much of the same as Clearfield fell, 68-28.
Six games remain in the season for Clearfield, with five of the games being Mountain League contests. Sitting at 7-9, the Lady Bison are back in action Monday night when they travel to Bald Eagle. The two squads met up last on December 20 in Clearfield, with the Lady Bison holding on for the 42-35 victory.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Hollidaysburg 20 24 13 13 – 70
Clearfield 10 7 9 6 – 32
Hollidaysburg – 70
Allison Hatajik 6 1-2 14, Sydney Lear 9 1-1 20, Abby Steiner 0 0-0 0, Ashden Stitt 0 2-4 2, Hanna Dipangrazio 0 0-2 0, Sam Shoemaker 0 0-2 0, Isabella Yohn 0 2-2 0, Bella Vent 9 0-0 19, Alissa Helm 1 0-0 3, Lauren Stevensen 1 0-0 2, Makenna Welmert 2 0-0 4, Clare Padamosky 2 0-0 4, Kaitlyn Lenhart 0 0-0 0, Erin Quigley 0 0-0 0, Lauryn Brick 0 0-0 0, Kamryn Lear 0 0-0 0, Jillian Sidney 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 30 6-13 70.
Clearfield – 32
Hannah Glunt 1 6-6 8, Alayna Winters 0 0-0 0, Cayleigh Walker 4 0-0 8, Riley Ryen 4 0-0 9, Mia Helsel 3 0-1 7, Arika Jones 0 0-0 0, Myleigh Hudson 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 12 6-7 32.
GAME STATISTICS
Hollidaysburg/Clearfield
- Shooting: 30-61/12-47
- Rebounds: 27/27
- Fouls: 10/18
- Turnovers: 21/27
- Three-Point Shots: Hatajik, S. Lear, Vent, Helm/Ryen, Helsel