Sullivan Fends Off Mattoon in First Win of New Year
Photo by Keith Stewart
Sullivan’s Brittin Boyer tries to make the block from behind on Mattoon’s Abrienne Lee Monday. Boyer was a juggernaut on offense scoring 32 points and bringing down 19 rebounds.
January 7, 2015
Boyer’s 32 points and 19 rebounds crucial in victory
by Keith Stewart
keith@newsprogress.com
Up until halfway through the third quarter, the largest lead either team possessed was five points. And after four lead changes, the game was still either Sullivan or Mattoon’s.
But halfway through the third, the Lady Green Wave managed three 3-pointers in under three minutes, the last of which coming at the buzzer, to take a 41-37 lead into the final period.
“When Sam (Thompson) hit that half court shot you could see it was kind of like a dagger, but I was thankful that was at the end of the quarter and not the game,” said Sullivan head coach Sheri McCain. “They responded in the fourth quarter, and that’s good because in the [Mattoon Holiday] tournament, some times when our back was against the wall, we didn’t respond. Tonight we did. I was glad to see how we stepped up and took care of the ball in the fourth quarter.”
Sullivan started the fourth on a 7-0 run with Emily Neuhauser’s basket low getting things started. Brittin Boyer would then hit the front-end of her two free-throws, but then after Neuhauser’s block on Samantha Thompson, Boyer scored from beneath the basket, the ball rolling around the rim before falling. Boyer would score again before Neuhauser followed up to cap the run before Sierra Thompson’s bucket and-one pulled Mattoon within two with 2:54 remaining.