ST. JOSEPH - It was anybody's ball game at the start of the fourth quarter in the Main Gym at St. Joseph-Ogden. Tied at 33-all and second-place conference standing on the line, visiting Unity came up four points short, falling 48-44 to SJO.
'You live or die by the three,' some coaches say. Last night, the Spartans thrived, finishing ten treys on their side of the scorebook. Senior Addisyn Martinie, who led St. Joseph-Ogden with a team-high 20 points, delivered five three-pointers.
The Spartans improved to 7-1 in the Illini Prairie, and 14-10 overall for the season.
Raegen Stringer led Unity's scoring effort, finishing the contest with a game-high 23 points. The senior collected four steals and hauled in four rebounds. Addison Ray contributed eight points with two three-pointers and a field goal. Lauren Haas rounded out the top three scorers for the Rockets with five points, all collected in the second half, and with six rebounds, and two assists.
Unity dipped to third in the conference standings with a 6-2 record and will put their 17-11 record on the line next week against Monticello (10-16) in their Senior Night game.
Sophomore Timera Blackburn-Kelley had her best night of the season, finishing as the second-leading scorer for the St. Joseph-Ogden with seven points. Addison Frick and Katie Ericksen chipped in six points each, along with Addison Brooks' five first-half total.
The Spartans host Paxton-Buckley-Loda (3-12) on Monday and finish regular season play with a road trip to Peotone on Wednesday.
