MANSFIELD — Slow starts are nothing new to the Bucyrus Lady Red. Some of those have cost them victories.
Mansfield Christian led by double digits early in the second quarter and led at every quarter break. But the Lady Red chipped away to overtake the Flames, 53-48, in a non-league game at the Furnace.
Freshman Bailee Nelson had a career high 24 points to lead the Flames’ early onslaught. The southpaw post virtually owned the low block, scoring eight points in the opening period as Christian built a 20-12 lead after having a 17-5 advantage earlier in the quarter.
“Credit to Mansfield Christian. They came out ready to play,” Bucyrus coach Brian Seybert said. “They had a great game plan. No. 31 (Nelson) was a tough guard for us. She had a really good night.”
Nearly equaling Nelson’s effort for Bucyrus (8-11) was Brook Dennison, who scored a team-high 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Ten of Dennison’s points came in the first quarter, keeping the Lady Red from getting blown out early.
“No. 10 (Dennison) hurt us pretty bad,” Flames coach Megan Young said. “We put Zy (Davis), who’s one of our better defenders, on her. But they did a good job at setting screens for her and getting (Davis) off her.”
The Lady Red whittled the deficit to 29-24 by halftime, putting themselves in position to make a run.
Christian (9-8) was able to shut out Dennison in the third quarter, but Malina Rowland came off the bench to score five of her eight points to help the offense. Rowland finished with two three-point shots.
“That’s what Malina can do for us,” Seybert said. “Now, if I can just find a way to get her to trust herself and drive to the rim. She can finish there as well. Plus, she’s a good free throw shooter.”
Bucyrus took its first lead of the night, 35-34, on Rowland’s 3 with 1:19 left in the third quarter. Christian was able to reclaim the lead on Raegan Standridge’s basket seconds before the buzzer to have a 36-35 advantage after three.
Christian’s rebounding edge, 41-31, kept the Flames in the game. Standridge had nine boards and Nelson seven to lead the way. Christian had 22 offensive rebounds.
“That’s something we preach to them, how important it is to rebound,” Young said. “You have to pursue the ball. You have to want it more than everybody else and getting a body on somebody each time.
“(Nelson) did a good job of rebounding, getting position and boxing out,” she added. “She had a really good night. We’re proud of her.”
The Lady Red took control of the game with a 10-0 run early in the fourth quarter to take a 45-38 lead. They maintained a 5–7-point lead over the last four minutes.
Marissa Middleton had eight points in the frame, while Dennison and Addison Kemery added six each. The Lady Red were six of eight from the line down the stretch.
“We’re a really good free throw shooting team,” Seybert said. “The girls are confident when they step to the line. It’s advantage us when we get to the free throw line.”
Middleton seconded Dennison with 11 points and grabbed eight boards. Kemery finished with 10 points.
“Addy Kemery had a good second half. Marissa Middleton had a good second half,” Seybert said. “Addy Ricker, Kendra Blizzard, and Malina Rowland all played well on the defensive end. We were more active in the zone in the second half. We got a little more deflections and got some steals.”
Standridge was next to Nelson’s 24 points with seven for the Flames. Davis added six.
“We had to battle. I wish I was happier about the win. It’s a win, we’ll take it. But I think we didn’t play our strongest tonight. Some of that could be credited to Mansfield Christian.”
“Their record doesn’t justify what they can really do,” Young said, referring to Bucyrus’ strength of schedule. “We wanted a hard game going into tournament. So, it was a good matchup for both of us.”
“I told them in the locker room after the game — we got down, but we didn’t quit,” Seybert said. “Credit to them for battling back and fighting through the adversity we were putting on ourselves. That led to us walking out of here with a win.”
Bucyrus also won the junior varsity game, 23-22. Addie weber led the Lady Red with nine points. Brooke Badgley and Katie Hamilton had six each for Mansfield Christian.
Box score
Bucyrus 12 12 11 18 — 53
Christian 20 9 7 12 — 48
Bucyrus (8-11): Shots 19-49; 3-pt. 6-17 (Brook Dennison 3, Malina Rowland 2, Kendra Blizzard); Free throws 9-14; Rebounds 31 (Brook Dennison 8, Marissa Middleton 8); Turnovers 12. Scoring: Kendra Blizzard 1 1 4, Brook Dennison 7 3 20, Addison Kemery 5 0 10, Marissa Middleton 3 5 11. Malina Rowland 3 0 8.
Mansfield Christian (9-8): Shots 19-54; 3-pt. shots 3-16; Free throws 7-17; Rebounds 41 (Raegan Standridge 9); Turnovers 18. Scoring: Zy Davis 2 1 6, Rebekah Kapustar 2 1 5, Adelle Cramer 2 0 4, Riley Patrick 1 0 2, Raegan Standridge 3 0 7, Bailee Nelson 9 5 24.
JV: Bucyrus 23-22.