BELLWOOD - Two of the better District 6 and Inter-County Conference girls basketball teams in Claysburg-Kimmel and Bellwood-Antis squared off on the hardwood Thursday night.
But instead of it being a highly competitive game, Bellwood-Antis came out and jumped all over the Lady Bulldogs, bolting out to a 13-point advantage before Claysburg-Kimmel even scored a point.
The Lady Bulldogs never dug themselves out of that hole, and Bellwood-Antis won, 60-48, at Bellwood-Antis High School.
"It was a typical backyard brawl type of game," Claysburg-Kimmel coach Jeff Appleman said. "It was hard fought but its tough to come back from the bad start."
What allowed Bellwood-Antis to jump out to such a big lead was the hot shooting from behind the arc, with Bailey Swogger, Katy Leamer and Ana Hollen each dialing long distance within just over a minute span.
With 4:05 remaining in the first quarter, the Lady Bulldogs finally got on the scoreboard with a basket by Kala Brumbaugh. Swogger drained her second trey of the quarter building an 18-4 lead with about 2:30 left. Kari Glass, Claysburg-Kimmel's sophomore guard/forward, finished the quarter with a 3-pointer just prior to the buzzer.
The second quarter could not have been anymore different than the first quarter was, with the Lady Bulldogs out-scoring Bellwood-Antis by a score of 18-11. The quarter was highlighted by a traditional three-point play, as well as one from beyond the arc, by Abigayle Kulick and also one by Paige Burk with just seconds remaining in the half. All of a sudden, Bellwood-Antis's lead was just five.
Basketball is often called a game of runs, and that could not have been any more true in the third quarter. The Blue Devils began the half by going on a 6-2 run, but the Lady Bulldogs answered immediately back with a 7-3 run.
By the end of the frame, the Blue Devils had built themselves a 14-point advantage. The Lady Bulldogs gave it their all and battled till the bitter end, outscoring Bellwood-Antis, 11-9 in the fourth, but it wasn't enough.
"The first and third quarters we couldn't have played any better," Blue Devils coach Jim Swaney said. "They have a very nice team."
Katy Leamer, coming off a 26-point outburst against Northern Bedford Monday night, but also battling sickness, was still able to lead her team in scoring with 17 points. Swaney couldn't say enough about his senior's efforts.
"Katy wasn't really practicing because she's been sick," Swaney said. "I'm really proud of the way she played."
Bellwood-Antis, now 3-0, hosts Mount Union Monday night.
The Lady Bulldogs fell to 2-1 and West Branch Monday.
CLAYSBURG-KIMMEL (48): Kulick 6 6-7 20, Brumbaugh 2 2-3 6, A. Burk 2 0-0 4, Ickes 2 0-0 4,La Snyder 2 0-0 4, P. Burk 1 2-2 5, Glass 2 0-0 5. Totals 17 10-12 48.
BELLWOOD-ANTIS (60): Hollen 4 5-8 16, Swogger 4 2-3 12, Ka. Leamer 7 2-4 17, Ke. Leamer 2 0-0 5, Damiano 1 0-0 2, Finn 1 0-0 2, Mercer 2 2-4 6. Totals 21 11-19 60.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Claysburg-Kimmel1118811 48
Bellwood-Antis23 11179 60
3-point field goals Claysburg-Kimmel 4 (Kulick 2, P. Burk, Glass); Bellwood-Antis 7 (Hollen 3, Swogger 2, Ka. Leamer, Ke. Leamer).
Records: Claysburg-Kimmel (2-1). Bellwood-Antis (3-0).
JV: Claysburg-Kimmel won 52-34. High scorers P. Burk, CK, 13; Showalter, BA, 8.
