PARKERSBURG, W.Va. — A mixture of Parkersburg Catholic’s transition and halfcourt offenses lifted the Crusaderettes to their 15th victory of the season, 75-48 over Williamstown Friday evening. PCHS (15-0) led for the final thirty minutes of the game and they have won each game this season by at least 22 points.
“This is really an emotional game when you play an arch rival,” said Parkersburg Catholic head coach Marty Vierheller. “Williamstown played really well. Coach [Fred] Sauro and his staff are excellent. But I thought we were patient. And we knew that we would have to be. We understand what teams are trying to do and they are trying to limit Leslie Huffman’s touches. I thought we did a good job of having other players step up for us tonight. And I was real pleased with their patience.”
Parkersburg Catholic led 21-14 after the first quarter and doubled that margin to 41-27 at halftime. A 10-3 run to open up the third quarter extended the lead to 21 points and the Crusaderettes would not be threatened the rest of the way. Junior post player Deborah Hardbarger led all scorers with 22 points.
“We don’t look to her for that kind of scoring. But she is capable. I think she proved that tonight where she is not the kind of player that you can leave alone. She did a nice job in not forcing things and did a really good job off the glass as well.”
Leslie Huffman scored 18 points for PCHS and Mary Tokodi-Ruth added a dozen as the Crusadrettes swept the regular season series from their sectional rivals.
“Both teams know each other incredibly well so you are not going to see a whole lot of surprises. It is just different. I don’t know if it is more difficult, but it is just difficult because of the respect we have for the opponent and their coaching staff.”
Sophia Folwell led Williamstown (6-9) with 12 points. Faith Pickens and Lakyn Joy added ten points each. This game was a rematch of the 2021 Class AA state semifinal matchup, also won by PCHS.