Hayley Yost played her best game as a Bluejay, getting 12 points and 14 boards and Kynder Florea hit a circus shot -- her only points of the night -- to fuel a key third quarter run as Northeast Nodaway's girls are suddenly red hot, winning four of their last five and cooling off Worth County. They won 44-34 and set a season high so far in points scored. In the Bluejays' 33-28 win over King City, Baylie Busby had 19 points and Hadley DeFreece 8 to account for nearly all of NEN's points against a taller Wildkat squad. Northeast led most of the game and led by as much as ten before running their delay game for much of the fourth quarter to secure the win.
The focus of the game for the Bluejays was to get someone else besides Baylie Busby in the scoring column and to shut down Kristen Tracy, who had been fueling Worth County's 4-1 start. Worth County followed the game plan that worked against Pattonsburg; they alternated Keira Hardy and Megan Tracy on Busby and held her down to 12 points, well below her average of 20. But seven Bluejays found their way into the scoring column, including three in double figures as they made Worth County pay.
Meanwhile, Northeast turned the ball over 22 times, but forced 17 turnovers as they continued the stingy defense that has fueled their resurgence. They neutralized the lopsided giveaway/takeaway ratio that had fueled Worth County's run and destroyed them on the boards, doubling them up with 42 rebounds to 21 for Worth County. They have held all their opponents except for Nodaway Valley to 34 points or less this year.
The Bluejays started off with a rare scoring burst as Busby floated in the lane and scored after grabbing an offensive board. Hayley Yost scored from inside, Blair Nelson jumped a pass and scored, and Busby followed with another steal as the Bluejays jumped out to an 8-0 lead just over two minutes into the game. Audrey Runde broke the run for Worth County, but by that point, the Bluejays had forced five Tiger turnovers. Hayley Yost scored off an inbounds pass from Hadley DeFreece to make it 10-2.
At that point, Baylie Busby picked up her second foul and Worth County started pressing every time she was on the bench. They chipped away at the line, getting free throws from Kristen Tracy and Rylee Ruckman and slowly neutralizing the turnover margin as they closed to within 10-5. But Busby came back in and Skyler Florea, who showed signs of shaking off the nearly two year layoff, drove and scored to make it 12-5 after one. The rebounding margin was lopsided in the Bluejays' favor, with Worth County not getting their first rebound until two minutes were left in the first quarter and Northeast enjoying a 13-2 rebounding margin after one.
It didn't help Worth County that they were missing free throws right and left in the first half. But despite that, they started chipping away as Kristen Tracy finally got untracked. Northeast was collapsing hard on Tracy in the high post, with Hayley Yost guarding her and Hadley DeFreece, Baylie Busby, and Skyler and Kynder Florea all poking and tearing at the ball anytime it got into the post.
Baylie Busby cut inside and scored and Hayley Yost scored from inside to make it 15-7, but Megan Tracy hit a 3-pointer and Rylee followed her shot perfectly and drew a foul, hitting both free throws to make it 15-12. Skyler Florea scored from inside after a pass from Kynder, but Tracy scored again, Kambree Briner got a tip and Rylee Ruckman got a steal and made one of two to make it 17-15. Baylie Busby picked up her third foul trying to jump a pass and free throws from Megan Tracy tied it at 17 before Skyler Florea went backdoor to make it 19-17 at the half.
Rylee Ruckman hit a 3-pointer to start the second half to give Worth County its first lead of the game at 20-19, but Sasha Deardorff hit a shot from the wing to put Northeast right back in front 21-20. Hadley DeFreece followed with a steal to make it 23-20, and then Kynder Florea's circus shot followed. Hadley DeFreece was bringing it up the floor, saw Kynder open, and whistled her a bullet pass. Kynder didn't realize the ball was coming or that she was open, but turned around just in time to avoid being plunked in the head, grabbed it, and hit a wide open three for her only points of the game to make it 26-20.
From there, Northeast could do no wrong as they continued to put points on the board. Kynder Florea got Hayley Yost the ball inside, Baylie Busby went coast to coast and turned into a human bowling ball, knocking over two Tiger defenders and hitting both free throws to make it 30-20. Skyler Florea connected from the left side and then Baylie Busby slashed to the rim after Kynder Florea inbounded her the ball to make it 35-21 before Kristen Tracy hit at the buzzer to finally break the run.
Worth County tried pressing to get the ball back, but unlike the first half, Baylie Busby stayed on the floor for the whole second half, not picking up a single foul after getting three the first half. Northeast got into their delay game and took huge chunks of time off the clock to start the fourth quarter. Rylee Ruckman hit a 3-pointer to get the Tiger deficit down under double digits at 35-26, but Skyler Florea answered with one of her own to make it 38-26. Ruckman got a steal and scored to make it 38-28, but Baylie Busby split two defenders and made one out of two and followed up with a steal to make it 41-28.
The Tigers made another push, getting Kristen Tracy untracked down low and getting a 3-pointer from Audrey Runde to make it 41-32 and answered a Yost free throw with a shot from the high post from Tracy to make it 42-34. But Hayley Yost answered with a putback as Northeast reasserted itself on the boards down the stretch and they were able to run out the clock.
For Worth County, Rylee Ruckman had 12 points, Kristen Tracy 11, Audrey Runde and Megan Tracy 5, and Keira Hardy 1.
Kambree Briner had 8 boards. Kristen Tracy had 7, Audrey Runde 3, Megan Tracy 2, and Rylee Ruckman 1.
Kambree Briner had 5 assists. Megan Tracy, Kristen Tracy, and Audrey Runde had 2 each and Rylee Ruckman had 1.
Rylee Ruckman had 4 tips. Megan Tracy and Kambree Briner had 3 and Kristen Tracy, Keira Hardy, and Audrey Runde had 1.
Kristen Tracy had 5 steals. Megan Tracy had 3, Keira Hardy and Rylee Ruckman had 2, and Audrey Runde and Kambree Briner had 1.
For the Bluejays, Hayley Yost and Baylie Busby had 12, Skyler Florea 11, Kynder Florea 3, and Blair Nelson, Sasha Deardorff, and Hadley DeFreece had 2 each.
Hayley Yost and Baylie Busby both went beast mode on the boards, with Yost collecting 14 and Busby 13. Skyler Florea had 6, Kynder Florea 5, Hadley DeFreece 2, and Blair Nelson and Sasha Deardorff 1.
Kynder Florea had 5 assists. Hadley DeFreece had 3, Baylie Busby 2, and Blair Nelson, Hayley Yost, Sasha Deardorff, and Skyler Florea each with 1.
Hadley DeFreece had 6 tips. Baylie Busby had 5, Kynder Florea 4, and Skyler Florea 3.
Baylie Busby had 6 steals. Hadley DeFreece had 5, Skyler Florea 2, and Sasha Deardorff and Blair Nelson had 1.
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