Brunner, defense help Pirates chalk up first win

PERKINS TWP. — Perkins was getting the shots it wanted in the first half. The Pirates connected on just six of 24 tries, but Haylie Brunner erased woeful shooting with a two-minute stretch in the third quarter. Brunner knocked down four straight shots including a pair of 3-pointers to help Perkins ride the wave to a 56-41 SBC crossover win over Huron on Tuesday. "It was definitely huge with her finally hitting, which was great," first-year Perkins coach Leia Lyden said. "I love to see the success. I love to see her big some. I know she can and I know everyone on the team has struggled with getting shots up. We're getting the shots we want, but finally they were falling." Perkins (1-3) led 23-18 at halftime in a slow, methodical opening 16 minutes filled nearly to the brim with foul calls and free throw shots. Needing a spark to fend off a pesky Huron (0-2) club, it came from one of the Pirates' four seniors. Mallorie Jones opened the second half with a basket for Perkins before consecutive scores by Brunner. After a Tigers timeout, her triple pushed the Perkins lead to 32-18. Addie LaCivata knocked down a pair of free throws for Huron, but Brunner again was good from 3 to make it 35-20. "That was the difference in the game," Huron coach Darius Schaeffer said. "I thought if we could come out of halftime and tie it or take the lead, I thought that we had a good chance in the second half. We handled their pressure full-court in the first half. That's really what I was worried about coming into this." The Tigers didn't go quietly as Huron drew within 37-27 on a three-point play by LaCivita, but back-to-back scores by Elizabeth Green helped steady the ship for the Pirates. Perkins led 43-31 after three quarters and was never threatened in the fourth quarter. Huron was never able to make a run at the deficit as turnovers repeatedly cost the Tigers. Huron totaled 30 turnovers on the night including an eye-popping 11 in the fourth quarter alone. "We were really executing on defense," Lyden said. "We practice tough pressure and we emphasize help and help the helper. I think they did a pretty good job doing that. We really like to get fresh legs so we get subs in to keep that pressure up and cause those turnovers. Neither team was able to get into much of a rhythm in the first half with whistles aplenty. Perkins scored the last five points of the first quarter to lead 11-5 after eight minutes. Both teams crept up the scoreboard almost only via the free throw for most of the first half. The teams combined to shoot 28 free throws in the first half. "It is tough, but I figured it would be the case with how they play that full-court style," Schaeffer said. "It's going to be very physical. There was going to be a lot of fouls." After making just 25 percent of its shots in the first half, Perkins connected on 8 of 11 (73 percent) in the third quarter. "That's something we've been struggling with," Lyden said. "We know we're getting the shots we want and eventually they will fall. That's what we tell the girls. We tell them to keep shooting and doing what they do. Eventually they will fall tonight and they did." LaCivita led Huron with 15 points while Jessica Brown, who battled foul trouble in the first half, added 10 points. There's no rest for the weary for the Tigers, who are right back in action Thursday at home against Willard and Friday at St. Paul. "Personally, I like it," Schaeffer said. "Coming off a loss, we have one practice and we'll get right back after it to get a win. We don't have 10 days to sit and think about a loss. We can get back hopefully to winning Thursday and Friday, get back to .500, and hopefully make a run." Brunner's 19 points topped Perkins, who also got 12 points from Camryn VanVlerah. "With the way we play defense, we expect to have fouls," Lyden said. "If anything, we're trying to evaluate how the refs are calling it. We're not trying to intentionally be hurtful to the other team. We want to apply that pressure. If it just so happens that we get a foul call, we try to play smart. We want to play honest defense." HURON (0-2) Jessica Brown 4 5-10 13, Jenna Cox 2 1-2 5, Addie LaCivita 4 6-7 15, Mya Smith 1 0-0 2, Reece Hotz 1 4-4 6. TOTALS 12 16-23 41 PERKINS (1-3)Allie Brunner 1 3-6 5, Jordyn Brunner 2 1-3 6, Haylie Brunner 7 2-2 19, Mallorie Jones 1 2-4 4, Camryn VanVlerah 3 6-6 12, Avery Baker 0 2-4 2, Ava Quillen 1 0-0 2, Elizabeth Green 2 0-0 4, Braelyn Davie 0 2-2. TOTALS 17 18-27 56 Huron 5 13 13 10 — 41Perkins 11 12 20 13 —56 Three-point goals: Huron 1 (LaCivata); Perkins 4 (H. Brunner 3, J. Brunner)