~by Dustin Teays for The Scranton Journal
The Paton Churdan Rockets girls basketball team was looking to ride the wave of their first win to a few more this past week.
The Rockets girls had two games, one against the Boyer Valley Bulldogs Jan. 14, where they fell 52-18, and another against the Glidden-Ralston Wildcats Jan. 17, where they fell in a close one, 34-27. These losses dropped the Rockets to 1-12 overall through their first 13 games.
Against the Bulldogs, Alivya Smith continued to be the primary scorer for the Rockets as she had 10 points and recorded yet another double-double with 12 rebounds. Ella Tasler was the second-leading scorer with four points, and Kaliyah Minnihan and Grace Cullum were tied for the second spot in rebounds with seven apiece.
Overall, the Rockets struggled to shoot the ball against the Bulldogs as they made just seven for 47 from the field for just a 14.9 percent field goal percentage and 14.3 percent from behind the arc. They also shot just 20 percent from the charity stripe and had 21 turnovers.
In the game against the Wildcats, Smith led the team in scoring again with nine points and had a team-high 13 rebounds. Minnihan was the second-leading scorer with seven points and the team’s second-leading rebounder with 10 boards. Ava Minnehan was third in rebounds, with five to go along with two points. Cullum led the team in steals with three, and Tasler was just behind her with two.
Again, the Rockets struggled to find the bottom of the net, going nine for 47 from the field for a 19.1 percent field goal percentage and shot 22.2 percent from beyond the arc. The Rockets did improve their free throw percentage, shooting 58.3 percent from the charity stripe.
The Rockets are seeing solid production from both Alivya Smith and Kaliyah Minnihan as they are both averaging double digit points a night and Smith has really come on strong as of late, as she is currently averaging a double-double with 13.2 points per game and 11.2 rebounds per game.
This week, the Rockets expected to face the Ar-We-Va Rockets on Tuesday. The Paton-Churdan girls will then close out their week against the Coon Rapids-Bayard Crusaders on Friday in Coon Rapids.
The extended calendar has the Rockets facing the West Central Valley Wildcats on Jan. 30 and CAM on Jan. 31.
