PARKERSBURG, W.Va. — Parkersburg Catholic collected another quality early-season victory, defeating Wheeling Central Catholic 66-40 in a matchup of final four teams from last season.
The Crusaderettes (8-0) did not allow more than twelve points in any quarter and they did not relinquish the lead after taking it three minutes into the contest.
“We love to run. We love to play that uptempo style of basketball and we love to press. But there is still certainly a place in basketball for hard-nosed defense,” said Parkersburg Catholic head coach Marty Vierheller. “Our girls played that tonight and they reaped the benefits of the way they played on the defensive end.”
PCHS led 15-7 at the end of the first quarter and they extended that lead to 35-20 at halftime.
Leslie Huffman (22 points), Aaliyah Brunny (19 points) and Madeline Huffman (12 points) combined for 53 of the Crusaderettes’ 66 points. Vierheller was impressed with the work of his role players as well.
“It took all ten players to get this one done,” Vierheller said. “Jenna Boice jumped in early and took two charges. I know we have the three players that do a lot of our scoring but it doesn’t mean that our other players can’t score. Any of them I feel can contribute on any given night.”
Kaylee Reinbeau led Wheeling Central (6-6) with 18 points and Hannah White chipped in with 13.
Parkersburg Catholic remains one of five girls teams in West Virginia still owning a perfect record.
“It was a significant win but you can’t win a state championship in January. This was just one test along the way. Tonight we passed the test. We understand there is a lot of work to be done between now and the end of the season.”