FAIRVIEW PARK, Ohio – Rocky River defeated newly-minted Great Lakes Conference foe and longtime-rival Fairview, 54-41, on Saturday afternoon.
A strong Pirate defense paved the way for dominance in the game’s first half. And a clicking River offense took over in the second. Junior forward Maria Potts went 9-of-13 from the field and posted a double-double. Potts logged 18 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, a pair of steals and a block in a busy afternoon at Fairview Gymnasium. Sophomore center Kelsey Murphy went 8-of-15 from the floor in adding a career-high 17 points.
The Pirates (10-3, 6-2 GLC) held the Warriors to just five
points in the opening quarter and seven in the second. The Maroon & White
went into halftime leading, 21-12. The Roundball Raiders would outscore the
home five, 33-19, over the second half.
River shot 40.4% (21-of-52) from the field for the game. Pirate passing was sharp, yielding the most assists (14) the team has had in a single game since Dec. 11. Sophomore guard Sophia Murray recorded eight of those 14 assists. Murray also tallied four steals as part of the Pirates’ plus-6 (19 to 25) in turnover margin.
The victory pulled of a one-week sweep of the GLC’s two new programs – Rocky River defeated Buckeye, 62-38, on Wednesday. The combined 116 points over the two games marks River’s most over back-to-back games since scoring 120 against Normandy and Parma on Dec. 4 and Dec. 7.
Rocky River is now 12-0 against Fairview since 2007.
The Pirates will begin their second round of GLC games on
Wednesday when they visit Normandy (7:30 p.m. tip).
CANNON FIRE …
JV RUNS RECORD TO 10-3: The JV Pirates defeated their Fairview counterparts, 37-24, on Saturday. Freshman Emma Convery scored 17 to lead Rocky River.
ON THE MARK: River’s 40.4% field-goal accuracy mark at Fairview marks the team’s second-best shooting performance of the season (43% vs. Lutheran West, Dec. 27). … Sophia Murray’s eight assists Saturday marked the most for a player in a single game since Julia Potts logged eight against Normandy on Dec. 4.
by Skip Snow
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