Ridgeline’s Emilee Skinner drives to the basket as Bountiful’s Jordyn Harvey, left, and Taylor Harvey defend Friday night in Millville. The Riverhawks beat the Redhawks, 50-43, in a battle of unbeatens.
Ridgeline’s Emilee Skinner drives to the basket as Bountiful’s Jordyn Harvey, left, and Taylor Harvey defend Friday night in Millville. The Riverhawks beat the Redhawks, 50-43, in a battle of unbeatens.
MILLVILLE — In the battle of two of the last three unbeaten girls basketball teams in the entire state, it was the Riverhawks that soared to a victory Friday night.
Ridgeline hosted 5A Bountiful and used a big second quarter to get in front. The Riverhawks stayed there the rest of the way, maintaining at least a five-point lead in the second half on their way to a 50-43 win against the Redhawks.
“This is a pretty good win,” said Ridgeline junior Macie Brown, who finished with a double-double of 13 points and 16 rebounds. “We went undefeated for preseason, and we are the only undefeated team in the state now (joining 2A Kanab). I’m excited for region to start.”
The Riverhawks (12-0) were only outscored in the fourth quarter and just by a point. It seemed like every time the Redhawks (9-1) would score, Ridgeline answered.
“Bountiful is a great team,” Ridgeline head coach Ainsli Jenks said. “We knew coming in this would be tough. We knew we had to play good defense tonight. We knew we needed to get up and get some pressure to make some things happen.”
Both teams came into the game not only undefeated but with big scoring margins. Bountiful was at +24.9, and Ridgeline was at +28.1.
The Redhawks biggest lead Friday night was two points, while the Riverhawks biggest lead was 10. For the most part, it was close throughout.
Heading to the fourth quarter, Ridgeline held a 39-31 lead. Four times Bountiful got within five, but could get no closer.
Emilee Skinner drove in for a bucket to answer one Redhawk charge. Elise Livingston took a pass from Brown and drilled a 3-pointer the next time Bountiful got within five. Then Brown scored the final six points, hitting a 3-pointer off a pass from Skinner, sinking a free throw and driving in for a bucket to make it 50-40 with 1:07 to play.
“We had a lot of ball movement,” Brown said. “You can never make a good shot without a good pass. It’s all about team work. Everyone on this team can shoot.”
Once again the Riverhawks had balanced scoring. Joining Brown in double-digits was Skinner (12) and Livingston (10). Hallee Smith was close with nine points. Skinner added four rebounds and a team-best four assists. Smith came up with six steals and dished out two assists.
“Macie was all over tonight, but what I liked from her tonight is she struggled finishing a few times and maybe got hit, but she just kept at it,” Jenks said. “That is huge and shows her maturity and want to win.”
The Redhawks were led by 6-foot-3 sophomore Taylor Harvey with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Claire Cook netted 10 points, all in the second half. Skinner guarded Harvey for a good portion of the game.
“She is a good player,” Skinner said of Harvey. “I just tried to get a hand up and not have any easy shots.”
Bountiful scored first, but Ridgeline responded with the biggest run of the game — scoring seven unanswered. After five lead changes and two ties, the Riverhawks took a 14-13 lead into the second quarter when Nia Damuni drilled a 3-pointer off a pass from Skinner.
Ridgeline would stay in front the rest of the way. The Riverhawks outscored the Redhawks 11-4 in the second to take a 25-17 lead into the break. Brown grabbed eight of her boards in the second.
“Everyone was boxing out, so it was teamwork,” Brown said of getting so many boards in the second. “A lot of times it is whoever wants it more.”
“We took care of the ball in the first half; we only had two turnovers,” Jenks said. “That is a key against a good score.”
Bountiful scored the first four points of the third quarter to cut the deficit in half, but then the hosts responded. Skinner drove in for a basket and then found Smith for a layup. Smith had six points in the third and gave Ridgeline its largest lead, 35-25, with a layup off a pass from Livingston.
“They (Redhawks) are super long and athletic, but I thought we matched up well with them,” Skinner said. “It came down to who wanted it more. It was just a good match up.”
Ridgeline took a eight-point lead into the final eight minutes.
“We are excited to get going with region,” Jenks said. “It’s going to be a battle every night.”
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