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Priest River unable to hang with Lumberjacks, fall to 0-4

by DYLAN GREENE
Sports Editor | November 25, 2020 1:00 AM

ST. MARIES — Priest River girls basketball struggled to find a rhythm in a 61-31 loss to St. Maries on Tuesday night.

The Lumberjacks pressured the Spartans for most of the night and forced 32 turnovers in the game, including 18 in the first half.

"We completely lost our composure during St. Maries press," head coach Gary Stewart said, "which led to very easy points for St. Maries."

St. Maries also took advantage of second chances to score and outrebounded the Spartans 24-19.

The Lumberjacks jumped ahead 14-2 in the first quarter and took a 16-8 lead after eight minutes of action.

St. Maries' lead grew to as many as 23 points in the second and they grabbed a 36-17 advantage at the half.

Senior point guard Hannah Palfrey scored 9 points in the first half to lead the Spartans.

In the third quarter, Priest River finally settled in and got things going on both ends of the court. The Spartans cut the deficit down to 10 and held the Lumberjacks scoreless for over four minutes. But St. Maries went on a run late in the quarter to stretch its lead back to 19 entering the fourth quarter.

The Lumberjacks (1-2) outscored Priest River 15-4 in the final frame to cruise to victory.

Stewart said everyone must work on knowing their assignment on defense.

"Defensively, we are plainly very inexperienced at playing man to man," he said. "It is a very time demanding commitment, so we are going to take our lumps."

Palfrey finished with 9 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals. Sophomore Lilly Freitas tallied 8 points, four steals and three rebounds and freshman Samantha Pound scored 5 points. Senior Makia Fitzmorris had 4 points, four rebounds and three assists and freshman Allyson Barton added 4 points and seven rebounds.

On Friday, the Spartans competed in the opening round of the Silver Valley Tournament in Kellogg. Priest River faced off with Wallace for the second time this season and lost 46-33. Palfrey led the team with 11 points, Fitzmorris added 10 and Pound had 6.

The loss meant Priest River had to face Intermountain League foe Kellogg in a consolation game Saturday. The Wildcats won 54-20.

The Spartans head into Thanksgiving break with an 0-4 record. The team returns to action Wednesday, Dec. 2 when they host Wallace at 4:30 p.m.