The Tigers jumped out to a quick start and never looked back.
Monday night the Lady Panthers welcomed one of the Colonial League’s best basketball teams to town. The Northwestern Lehigh Lady Tigers brought their 6-1 league record with them and earned the victory to make it 7-1. The Panthers played hard and with great effort, but the experience, depth and overall talent of the Tigers was just too much. Northwestern Lehigh doubled up Saucon Valley 52-26.
A rather stingy Panther defense slowed the potent Tiger offense at the start of the game. The Panthers allowed a layup to the Tigers a little over a minute into the game. Panther junior, Shannon Williams hit a free throw to make it 2-1 with 4:52 remaining in the opening period. The Tigers then started hitting their stride and ventured on an eight point surge over the next three minutes to make it 10-1. Saucon sophomore, Brooke Riefenstahl hit a short jumper with about a minute remaining to make it 10-3. Northwestern followed suit making the score 12-3 to close the 1st period.
Space was tight for the Lady Panthers to operate.
The Panthers continued playing solid defense, but could not find a consistent scoring groove. Northwestern scored the first two buckets of the quarter. Panther sophomore Kat Naiburg hit a couple of free throws at 5:58 and a three-pointer at 3:52 to give a little offensive life to Saucon. Northwestern, however, with a very quick defense took advantage of Saucon turnovers and increased their lead to 25-8 with under a minute to play in the half. Sophomore Olivia Williams hit a little runner for the Panthers to make the score 25-10, but The Tigers had the last say in the half with a free throw. At the break, the Tigers were in control 26-10.
The Panther offense struggled to keep pace with the Tigers.
For the first half of the third period the Panthers matched the Tiger offensive productivity. Olivia Williams found her touch from the outside and scored eight Panther points which kept pace with the Tigers. At 3:45 however, the Tigers made a six point run and extended their lead 40-18. Sophomore Katie Kramer came off the bench and added a couple points for her Panther partners, but Northwestern hit a three-pointer as time ran out. At the end of the 3rd period it was 43-20 in favor of the Tigers.
Sophomores Kat Naiburg and Olivia Williams moving the ball to get a good look at the hoop.
The pesky Panther defense maintained their workman effort and limited the Tigers to only five points in the first five minutes of the final quarter. Saucon limited the Tigers to a total of nine points for the duration of the period. Saucon sophomore Kiele Riefenstahl’s three-pointer and senior Brainna Estojak’s three free-throws added up to a 52-26 final.
Juniors Leighanna Lister and Gabrielle Sevrain led the Tigers in scoring. Lister had 16 points and Sevrain added 10.
Saucon Valley was again led by the hot hand of sophomore Olivia Williams who had 10 points. Katherine Naiburg, also a sophomore, added five for the Panthers.
Senior Brianna Estojak cut the Tiger lead in half.
It was another loss for the Panthers, but it was not all bad. Considering the talent of the Tigers, the Panthers played admirably. Saucon played good defense against a very deep and skilled team. Aside from the eight-point run by the Tigers in the opening quarter, the Panthers limited any major scoring outbursts by a very good basketball team. Offensively, the Panthers were able to penetrate and create many good chances. Saucon created a little more space and did get more good looks at the hoop. But, at this stage of the learning curve, the ball did not fall their way.
Looking past Saucon Valley’s win-loss record, the humble consolation of improvement is revealed. The Panthers are playing with noticeably more skill and confidence. They certainly don’t back down from their challenges and play with hustle and grit. The tipping point to success is getting closer.
Up Next: It certainly does not get any easier for the Saucon Valley girls’ basketball team. The undefeated Bangor Slaters come to Hellertown for what will be a Wednesday night slugfest. Bangor is a physical team with a ton of talent. It is another challenge that the Lady Panthers will meet head on.
