Taconic's Defense Keys Win over Drury

By Brian RhodesiBerkshires.com Sports
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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Defense was the key for the Taconic girls basketball team on Friday night, beating the Drury Blue Devils 53-29.
 
The Thunder led for nearly the entire game, led by Amelia Leasure with 11 points, all in the first half. Brenna McNeice had 10 points, and Alex Hudson had nine with two 3-pointers.
 
Morgan Sarkis led Drury with six points, followed by Jacinta Felix and Brooke Bishop with five points each.
 
The game was close through the first quarter. Strong defense in the last few minutes of the quarter helped Taconic take a 14-10 lead into the second.
 
Neither team could score through the first two-and-a-half minutes of the second quarter, before Taconic broke through to take a six-point lead. From there, Taconic scored another 14 points in the quarter while only giving up four to Drury, two of which came from free throws.
 
The Thunder defense forced multiple turnovers and jump balls in the quarter, allowing the team to build its lead into the double digits.
 
Drury's lone field goal of the quarter came with just 15 seconds left in the half. This shot was immediately followed by a 3-pointer from Taconic's Brenna McNeice, ending the half with a score of 30-14.
 
Taconic improved on its 16-point quarter in the second by scoring 18 more in the third. The Thunder pushed the lead above 20 points less than a minute into the quarter.
 
Drury's 12 points in the quarter, the most of any in the game, were enough to cut the lead to just 17 with four minutes left. Taconic quickly took control back, however, bringing a 22-point lead into the fourth with a score of 48-26.
 
Taconic allowed only three points in the fourth quarter, while scoring five of its own. Despite the lead, the team's defensive pressure continued throughout the game.
 
Taconic's record sits at an even 4-4 after Friday's win as the team prepares to play on the road against Holyoke on Jan. 23. After the loss, Drury will head into its Jan. 23 road game against Monument Mountain with a 5-5 record.
 
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