Wybensinger leads PC to win over Sandusky

PORT CLINTON — After leading by 12 points after one quarter, Port Clinton had a rough second quarter. The Redskins tallied just three points — a Thea Wybensinger 3-pointer – until late buckets from Elizabeth Bubb and Olivia Emerson helped PC gain some momentum. Sandusky kept coming in the second half and even took the lead, but Wybensinger was there to save the day. Behind a career-high 20 points from the freshman point guard, Port Clinton dominated the final 12 minutes of the game, topping the Blue Streaks, 56-43, in non-league action Monday. "It wasn't just (her scoring)," PC coach Kevin Belden said. "It was her taking care of the basketball. The girls know we need the ball in our hands and she made the right decisions. She had some nice passes as well. She took control of the game and did a fantastic job." The Redskins (7-3) led 16-4 after a sloppy first quarter, but Sandusky (3-6) kept pushing. The Blue Streaks were within 21-18 on a tally by Khiya Rameau, but Cornell's score near the half kept PC up by five. The momentum didn't stop there as Sandusky pressed forward with the first six points of the third quarter in just a 30-second span. Later, consecutive scores by Mae Rameau and Khiya Rameau gave the Blue Streaks a 28-27 advantage. But, that was the last lead Sandusky had as Port Clinton kicked up its game. Wybensinger dropped in three straight buckets before Christiona Fenton scored to make it 35-28. "Overall if you take out that middle part of the third quarter, I thought we played great basketball," Sandusky coach John Winborn said. "I think we played winning basketball. But, we let (Wybensinger) get off and get a little confidence. She saw the ball go through the basket a bunch of times and that fueled her." It was just a 37-32 lead for Port Clinton more than 90 seconds into the fourth quarter before the Redskins were really able to put the game away. Olivia Spencer and Wybensinger hit consecutive triples to make it a double-digit lead. After a Sandusky timeout, Wybensinger and Spencer each tallied a basket to further the advantage to 47-32 with 4:33 left. PC was able to keep the Blue Streaks at bay from there. Sandusky was hurt by a 3 of 14 effort at the free throw line and 24 turnovers. "They always say unforced turnovers will kill you and they did the trick," Winborn said. "I think in the first half, we had (14) turnovers and nine or 10 of them were unforced. We're not making the easy pass. We're looking for the home run. We're looking for the bang." Spencer was hot early for the Redskins. She scored seven of Port Clinton's first nine points in building a 9-2 lead. After a Denasia Coy basket for the Blue Streaks, Erieyonna Buckley scored twice and Fenton hit a 3 for a 16-4 edge after eight minutes. Baskets by Coy, Amari Prentice and Khiya Rameau brought Sandusky within 16-10 less than a minute into the second quarter. "The girls were very resilient today," Belden said. "Sandusky, I don't care what their record is — they're a good basketball team. They're going to win some games as the season progresses. They're very, very fast and very, very athletic. They can get up into you. They did that to us today." Khiya Rameau led the Blue Streaks with 15 points while Coy added 10 points. Ri'Kiya Collier grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds for Sandusky. "The girls always respond," Winborn said. "We buckled down and played defense. We latched in and we played defense. We just have to put it together for four quarters. If we can put it together for four quarters, we can be a hell of a team." Behind Wybensinger, Spencer tallied 14 points and 11 rebounds and Buckley added 11 points. While Port Clinton got away with a rough second quarter, Belden knows the team has to put all four quarters together to compete with the best. The Redskins will get that chance Friday when they host Danbury (8-1). "That's something we're getting to," Belden said. "To be honest, we haven't put it together yet this year. 7-3 is a very solid record at the almost halfway point. I think we have a ways to grow, but Thea took a big step for a young kid today." SANDUSKY (3-6)Mae Rameau 2 0-2 5, Maddie Peugeot 1 0-0 2, Ra'Kiya Collier 2 0-0 4, Denasia Coy 5 0-3 10, Khiya Rameau 6 2-7 15, Shauntha Wilson 1 1-2 3, Cassidy Stovall 1 0-0 2, Amari Prentice 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 19 3-14 43PORT CLINTON (7-3)Christiona Fenton 3 0-2 7, Olivia Spencer 6 0-1 14, Thea Wybensinger 7 4-4 20, Erieyonna Buckley 5 1-2 11, Olivia Emerson 1 0-0 2, Elizabeth Bubb 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 23 5-9 56Sandusky 4 14 12 13 — 43Port Clinton 16 7 12 21 — 56Three-point goals: Sandusky 2 (M. Rameau, K. Rameau); Port Clinton 5 (Wybensinger 2, Spencer 2, Fenton)