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Late run lifts St. Clairsville

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Things didn’t look too promising for St. Clairsville as the second half began Thursday night.

Leading by four against visiting Bellaire, the Big Reds drew to within one on a Kat Davis 3. Then, seconds later, Katie Strama struggled to leave the floor due to her lingering knee injury.

Fortunes soon turned for the Red Devils, as they crafted a 9-2 run and held Bellaire to 14 points the rest of the way in posting a 49-38 Buckeye 8 girls’ basketball triumph on John Jenkins Court.

“It’s a nice win,” St. Clairsville head coach Stacey Agnew beamed. “We’re getting better … a little bit each game.”

Davis was her usual self, leading all scorers with 24 points. But the Red Devils (3-1) shut everyone else down, especially down the stretch. The Big Reds (2-2) got just two field goals from players not named Davis in the second half en route to their second straight loss.

“I know Katrina had her fair share,” Bellaire head coach John Farrier said. “But we need to find other people to score.

“We tried other people and we got some good looks. Like I told (the girls), I think we’ll get better. The one thing I told them is that it’s going to be a process. We’re going to have highs and lows. And right now, this is kind of a low moment. But we can’t allow the lows to get too low.”

Fueling the St. C. surge was Keri Klinkoski. The senior, who finished with a team-high 17 points, was a force inside and out and scored all of her points during the first three periods. She had nine in the pivotal third, including a tritfecta that put the Red Devils up 30-24 at the 6:20 mark.

“She stepped up and had a heckuva game,” Agnew stated.

As, he continued, did the rest of the starters who, he said, continue to jell and polish their games on both ends of the floor.

“We’ve talked about playing twice a week and getting in a groove,” said Agnew, whose team bounced back from a loss at Martins Ferry (4-2). “We just want to keep getting better.”

Lizzie McAninch drained a jumper making the score 30-26. But Klinkoski and Macy Malin converted back-to-back layups pushing St. C.’s lead back to eight with 5:35 left in the third.

Megan Malin and Strama connected as the quarter closed, putting the Red Devils up 11. From there, St. C.’s defense took over, holding Bellaire to eight fourth-quarter points — all by Davis.

“We didn’t want her to go for 40,” Agnew smiled when referencing Davis. “She had 24, but I think she had to work for all of them.”

Farrier was disappointed with his squad’s rebounding performance and inability to finish possessions. The slow start, too, was another hurdle, something that’s happened the last three games out.

“We had some opportunities when Kat was doubled and we had people open,” he said. “We just couldn’t finish.”

That was something St. C. willed itself to do, especially late.

“Things are coming along,” Agnew said. “We’re happy, but we know we can get better.”

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