Pine River-Backus at Pequot Lakes

Recap

A 19-0 2nd half run propelled the Pequot Lakes Patriots to an opening night victory over their Hwy. 371 rivals from Pine River-Backus.

The first half, after the Patriots started fast up 6-0, was back and forth and had the crowds roaring. There were three ties and four lead changes, with neither team having a big rush, and at the break the Patriots led 31-29.

The offenses were sluggish starting the second half as each team cranked up the energy on the defensive side. Pequot Lakes score the first five points to go up 36-29, but neither team scored a field goal in the first 4:30 of the second frame. Pine River-Backus finally got a burst, and with an 8-0 run took a 37-36 lead. It was then, with the help of some PRB foul trouble, that the Patriots got hot and rattled off nineteen straight points.

The run pushed the Patriots to a lead that the Tigers couldn’t over come, and Pequot Lakes claimed back-to-back victories in the series after winning a thriller in Pine River last year.

The 1-0 Patriots travel to section opponent Pillager on Thursday, which will be on CASH 95.9. The Tigers (0-1) host big section rival Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa Friday night, that can be seen on Your Live Event.com.

Team Stats:
Turnovers – PRB 25, PL 18; Rebounds (Total-Offensive) – PL 35-13, PRB 30-8; Free Throws – PL 10/12, PRB 11/24

PRB Leaders: Ramsey Tulenchik 24 pts, 5 blocks, 3 steals; Claire Dahl 7 pts, Cate Travis 5 pts
PL Leaders: Maci Martini 20 pts, 2 assists; Isabel Larson 11 pts, 3 stls; Ella Kratochvil 6 pts, 5 stls, 3 assists, 2 blocks; Kelsi Martini 8 pts, 2 assists

Postgame Talk with PL Coach Brian Lempola