By: Joe Shouse, Sportswriter
Wayne Trace faced a potent “inside-outside” combination in the likes of Michelle Marshall and Mercedes Wagner last Thursday evening. The duo from Fairview had their way and could not be stopped as the Apaches shot past the Raiders en route to a 58-52 GMC win. Marshall, a sharp shooting guard Michelle scorched the Lady Raiders with 20 points, hitting 5-8 from behind the arc. While Marshall was doing the damage from the outside, it was 6-1 Mercedes Wagner with her inside play, securing a double-double performance. Wagner finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds along with six assists to help the Apaches paste the Raiders with their first GMC loss.
The Raiders got off to a slow start and quickly fell behind 10-2 before senior Kaylee Shepherd drained a couple of first quarter trey’s along with a three-pointer from Claire Sinn to pull the Raiders to within two at 13-11. The initial eight minutes closed out with Fairview leading 17-15.
The red, white, and blue opened second quarter play with a seven-point run on a Miriam Sinn triple followed by a Rachel Stoller and Shepherd two-point basket. The Raiders were leading 22-17 before the Apaches regained the lead thanks to the offensive burst from Marshall and Wagner who orchestrated a 10-0 run to put their squad back on top 27-22.
The half ended with a spark from the Raiders as Katrina Stoller and Miriam Sinn each added a two-point bucket to send the Raiders to the locker room holding a slim four point margin 33-29.
In a game that featured short runs by both teams, the Apaches came out in the third frame and turned a four-point deficit into a three point advantage with an impressive seven-point run, fueled by Wagner, Marshall and Riley Mealer. The Raiders continued to battle and managed to secure the lead briefly on a Shepherd three-pointer and a Rachel Stoller bucket to put the Raiders up 40-38 with 4:22 remaining in the third period. A Fairview free throw and a Marshall long range trey helped Fairview regain the lead at 42-40 and the Raiders would not recover. The quarter ended with the Apaches leading 48-42.
The Raiders fell behind by as many as nine in the fourth but managed to work their way back to trail by just two at 52-50 on back-to-back buckets from Shepherd and Sadie Sinn with just over three minutes remaining. In the closing minutes the Apaches used the foul line to secure the win, hitting four free throws to win by six.
Senior Kaylee Shepherd led the Raiders with 18 points including three goals behind the arc and going perfect at the free throw line, hitting her three attempts. Miriam Sinn chipped in nine points while collecting seven rebounds, seven steals and dishing out two assists. Rachel Stoller added seven points and five rebounds with team mate Sadie Sinn finishing with seven points. Katrina Stoller totaled six points and Claire Sinn added five points and five board.
The Raiders fall to 14-2, having their 13-game winning streak stopped. More importantly, it was the Raiders first GMC loss, moving their league mark to 3-1. Fairivew improves to 12-4 overall and like the Raiders are 3-1 in the GMC.
The Junior Varsity Raiders continued their winning ways with a 46-33 win over the young Apaches.
