Maidens roll over Lady Loggers

RONAN — The Maidens have been working on their shooting.

They beat Libby thanks to some stellar shooting from Shayla Couture who drained back-to-back three pointers in the second period.

"That was a big lift for our team," said head coach Mike Graham. "With having Lauryn [Lynch] on the bench we needed someone to score for us. It was a big momentum builder for our team."

Things were neck-and-neck in the first with Libby matching Ronan shot-for-shot. In the last second, Libby got fouled and managed one point to give them an 8-7 edge.

The Maidens scored 11 points, nine of which belonged to Couture — giving Ronan a five point buffer going into half-time.

Holly Oakland made a bucket in the opening minutes of the third and Kelly McMillan went two-for-two from the foul line to bring her team up 24-19. The Maidens forced a turnover on Libby and fed the ball to Lynch who made a lay-up giving her team a seven-point lead to end the frame 26-19.

Early in the fourth, Lynch sunk a trey, while Oakland and McMillan picked up a few points to give their team a 10-point buffer. In the last two seconds, Lynch was fouled and went two-for-two, ending the game 36-28.

Couture led with 13 points, Lynch followed with eight, Brianna Malmquist put up six and Oakland added four. McMillan had eight rebounds and Lynch earned three steals.

"We've been hitting our shooting, passing and dribbling since Christmas break and it's coming around," Graham said. "It was an all around good team effort. I knew we matched up well against them and we knew we'd have a chance if we shot the ball."

Graham predicts it'll be a dogfight when they meet Libby again later in the season as they'll want to avenge their loss. Libby suffered its first back-to-back losses since December.

Ronan vs. Sentinel

Things didn't pan out quite as well against Missoula Sentinel Tuesday night. The girls lost 72-37 as the Lady Spartans applied some rough court pressure on the Maidens.

"There is a reason why they are 4-0 in conference," Graham said of Sentinel. "They're good.

"They were solid in every position. Our hats are off to them. They helped the girls learn."

Lynch led in points with 17 in addition to 10 rebounds, three blocks and two assists. Couture added eight to the board, McMillan contributed four, Bethany Kosola put up two and Malmquist had a point.

Friday they host C-falls at 8 p.m.