The Rush City Tigers hosted Pine City last night.
This game was bound to be a good. Both teams coming in on winning streaks and both looking to get one step closer to capturing the conference crown.
In the 1st half the Tigers defense dominated and created turmoil on the Dragons game plan. Anytime the Dragons looked to have an open shot, or open lane the Tigers were right there to shut it down. Rush City Simply controlled the pace in the 1st half. Though they controlled the pace, Pine City was able to get some shots to fall through tough traffic. It was a lower scoring half but Rush City held the lead at half 19-17.
Though the 2nd half saw more points fall, it was much of the same. Defense was a big key once again for both sides. As the teams traded points, the Dragons were able to go on a little bit of a scoring run. Not only did they momentarily stop the Tigers from scoring but they stole the lead and built it up to 9. As the game swiftly moved towards the buzzer, both teams turned up the heat. Pine City wanted to add more to their lead but with under 3 minutes left Rush City once again found life. The defense created turnovers that lead to the offense scoring and cutting the Dragons lead down. As the clock trickled under 30 seconds, the Tigers were within 3. Then as Pine City looked to run out the rest of the clock the Tigers defense pounced. Grabbing another turnover and Alexis Ertz turned them into points. Only down by 1, they had a chance. But Pine City held on and escaped Rush City with the victory 46-45.
With the win Pine City's winning streak is up to 11 and they also remain undefeated in conference play. They'll host Ogilvie next Wednesday. Though Rush City fell, there is plenty for this team to be happy with and look forward to. The Tigers will certainly be a tough out in the playoffs. They fall to 5-10 on the year and will play host to Eveleth-Gilbert tonight.
Scoring:
Rush City
Alexis Ertz 19
Kayla Diedrich 18
Grace Folkema 6
Meghan Dick 2
Pine City
Karly Jusczak 20
Kloey Lind 10
Carissa Nascene 7
Summer Thieman 6
Maddie Berglund 3
Photo Credit: Four Seasons Photography
