The top team in 3A visited Price on Thursday night for a critical region matchup. Carbon came out in a press, which led to early takeaways and fast-break points. In a face-paced first quarter, the Lady Dinos held a slight 17-16 lead over Richfield.
The key to the Lady Dinos’ success in the first period was getting out in front of the Wildcat defense and attacking the basket. Unfortunately for the Lady Dinos, they began to settle for outside shots, which would not fall.
This became a double-edged sword because it also hindered Carbon’s ability to get in the press defensively. As a result, Richfield took control on the back of center Nicole Willardson. Willardson completely dominated the game with 24 points and led the Wildcats to a 53-36 win. After a hot start, Carbon was held to just 19 points through the last three quarters.
Haley Garrish played extremely well off the bench and finished with 10 points. She provided the best matchup against Willardson when out on the court. Madi Orth also added another 10 points, but the Dinos ended the night shooting 25 percent from the field.
They will have to improve that percentage as they get ready for another huge contest on Thursday. It’s rivalry week for the Dinos (10-5, 1-1) as they will head to the Spartan Center to take on Emery (12-4, 1-1). Catch all the action live on ETV Channel 10 and online at etvnews.com/livesports.
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- Photos by Jeff Barrett
