Wray delivers Lady Dragons first loss of the season

    After eight straight wins, the Holyoke Lady Dragon varsity basketball team took its first loss of the season last Tuesday, Jan. 9.
    On Wray’s home court, HHS came back from behind to take the Eagles into overtime, but Holyoke ended with a 53-61 loss.
    Coach John Baumgartner praised the Lady Dragons, saying they did an “awesome job” to rally together, add some points to the scoreboard and finish regular play with a tied score.
    He said the game was a good measuring stick to see how the team could compete with other top teams in the region. Wray was the runner-up team at last year’s 2A state championship.
    “Hopefully we’ll be ready for them next time,” said Baumgartner. Holyoke will see Wray again for the last regular season game Friday, Feb. 16, in Holyoke, and that’s the game that will count for league standings.
    In a recap of Tuesday’s game, the coach said the team was in foul trouble early on, and the score was tied at 12-12 at the end of the first quarter.
    The second quarter wasn’t pretty for Holyoke. The team’s six points couldn’t compare with Wray’s 15, and HHS ended the half with a nine-point deficit.
    Baumgartner said the Lady Dragons were behind by double digits in the third quarter, but they responded with 18 points on the scoreboard over Wray’s 11 points, bringing the total score to 36-38 in Wray’s favor.
    The teams kept the fourth quarter tight, but the Lady Dragons held on, and their 12 points — including 10 from Taeryn Trumper — tied the game at 48-48 at the buzzer.
    In overtime, Holyoke had too many crucial turnovers that gave Wray a chance to put some points on the scoreboard, said Baumgartner. Wray outscored Holyoke 13-5, and the Lady Dragons finished with the 53-61 loss.
    Top scorer for HHS was Trumper. Her 22 points included nine 2-pointers and four for seven from the line. Grace Dille totaled 17 points with five 2s, one 3-pointer and four for seven free throws.
    As a team, the Lady Dragons made 61 percent of their free throws, compared to Wray’s 46 percent.
    Dille led the rebounding effort with 16, including 11 on defense and five on offense.Dille and Victoria Race each had one blocked shot, Emily Jelden and Trumper both grabbed two steals, and Jelden finished with five assists.

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