Girls basketball: Dixie wins 3rd straight; Hurricane falls at Richfield

Written by Darren Cole
December 20, 2016
Dixie vs. Canyon View, Girls Basketball, St. George, Utah, Dec. 20, 2016, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

ST. GEORGE – As the Christmas break approaches, there were only two Region 9 teams in action Tuesday night. Dixie continued its winning trend with a victory over visiting Canyon View, while Hurricane fell on the road to a tough Richfield team. Below are game summaries of the action:

Dixie 50, Canyon View 41

dixie-logoDown by one at halftime, the Lady Flyers more than doubled Canyon View’s output in the third to take a 43-35 lead into the fourth quarter. Kelsea Barker was on fire, hitting 10 of 21 shots for a game high 27 points. Grace Killian joined her in double figures with 10. Barker also led the team with 10 rebounds for the double-double. Sina Schwalger scored seven points and dished out seven assists.

Dixie's Kelsea Barker (15), Dixie vs. Canyon View, Girls Basketball, St. George, Utah, Dec. 20, 2016, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News
Dixie’s Kelsea Barker (15), Dixie vs. Canyon View, Girls Basketball, St. George, Utah, Dec. 20, 2016, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

“The girls took advantage of the momentum tonight,” said Dixie head coach Jaime Araiza. “We fed off of the home-court energy, and great shooting and defense by Kelsea Barker. Kelsea is a great senior leader. She led the team well tonight with her scoring and rebounding. Grace Killian and Sina Schwalger also came up big on both ends of the floor.”

The Lady Flyers are riding a three-game winning streak to a 4-5 record. They will play Wednesday night on the road at Grantsville. Canyon View has its two-game winning streak snapped and falls to 2-7.

Richfield 45, Hurricane 32

hurricane-logoThe Lady Wildcats doubled Hurricane’s Jayden Langford most of the night and the strategy paid off as they were able to shut down the Lady Tigers leading scorer. Big first and fourth quarters were the difference as Richfield outscored Hurricane by 11 in the bookends.

“Our girls played good defense,” said Hurricane head coach Franci Homer. “We had a few breakdowns. In the end, we had to foul to try to get back in the game. Richfield has great balance.”

Alexa Christensen led the Tigers with 11 points. Madi Hirschi scored nine points and pulled down four rebounds. Tylee Brisk scored seven.

“Jayden (Langford) did not put up big numbers offensively, but played well at the defensive end,” said Homer. “All of our backcourt players had trouble offensively. We still have much to work on, but these games are learning experiences and we are getting better.”

Richfield improves to 9-1. Hurricane falls to 4-4. The Lady Tigers will play next in the Steve Hodson Cancer Classic. Their first game is Wednesday, Dec. 28 against Bryce Valley. Game time is scheduled for 10 a.m.

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Twitter: @oldschoolag

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2016, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Darren Cole recently returned to sportswriting after a 20-plus year hiatus. While pursuing other studies, he developed an early passion for sports writing as a senior writer and sports editor for the Ricks College Scroll in 1988-89. Darren has spent the last 20 years writing legal memorandi and appellate briefs. In addition to his legal career, he has also taught legal and criminal justice courses at the university level for nine years as an adjunct professor. Darren is married to wife Lisa, has two sons and is a confessed sports junkie.

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