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Union Executes Game Plan to Perfection in Win over Clarion-Limestone

STRATTANVILLE, Pa. (EYT/D9) – It’s no secret that as Frances Milliron and Kendall Dunn go, so does the Clarion-Limestone girls basketball team.

A good defensive effort in the first half limited the duo to just four points (two each) in the opening half, which helped Union snap C-L’s seven-game win streak with a 47-36 victory at the Lion’s Den.

(Photos by Shelly Atzeni)

“Our game plan coming in was to try and shut down (Frances) Milliron and (Kendall) Dunn,” said Union coach Ally Kepple. “Overall, I thought our girls did a real nice job at that.”

Dunn finished with 12 points in the game, while Milliron added 10. Milliron did add 10 rebounds, five assists, and four steals.

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“We didn’t shoot the ball well at all tonight,” said C-L head coach Gus Simpson. “We weren’t as aggressive as we had been up to this point in the season, although I feel we needed a game like this. We’d been playing ahead most of the season, though the last game we came back. But we hadn’t been behind for as long of a stretch as we were tonight. This is something the girls can learn from.”

While C-L (9-3) struggled with shooting, Union got hot, especially at the end of the first half when the Damsels reeled off three 3-pointers to turn a 12-11 deficit into a 23-13 halftime lead.

“I’d say the way they shut down Frances and Kendall, along with their rebounding, was a key tonight,” said Simpson. “Another key was how they shot the ball at the end of the half. They don’t make those 3’s we could be talking about a different outcome.”

Dominika Logue paced the Damsels with 16 points, 11 rebounds and five blocked shots. Keira Croyle added 14 points. Hailey Kriebel added seven points and eight rebounds.

“Dominika just goes out and does whatever we ask of her,” said Kepple. “We tell our girls that we need contributions from everyone and lately we’ve been getting that. We knew this was going to be a tough game coming up here based on how C-L had been playing. It’s good to get out of here with a win,”

Both teams struggled shooting the ball in the opening quarter as Union scored the first five points, before a 6-0 run put the Lions ahead 6-5. The two teams traded baskets with C-L holding an 8-7 lead after one.

Kriebel scored to open the second quarter, but missed the and-one foul shot to give the Damsels a 9-8 lead. Wiant scored for C-L for a 10-9 lead, which turned out to be its final lead of the contest. Logue added a 3-pointer for a 12-10 lead. Wiant hit a foul shot to cut the lead to 12-11 before a three by Kennedy Vogle started a quarter-ending 11-2 run for a 23-13 Union halftime lead.

A pair of baskets by Dunn helped C-L close to within eight at 25-17 early in the third. However, Union took control with an 11-4 run to take a 36-21 lead after three.

With Logue on the bench with four fouls, the Lions were able to trim a 15-point deficit down to 10 with a 5-0 spurt to cut the lead to 40-30 with 2:36 to play. Logue connected on 6-of-7 free throws down the stretch as Union closed the game with a 7-6 edge the rest of the way.

“Take nothing away from Union because they have a really good team and they played very well tonight,” said Simpson. “This is one game, one loss for us. We’ll learn from this one and we’ll try and move on and get ready for Clarion on Thursday.”

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Redbank Valley, Keystone, and Union/A-C Valley sports coverage on Explore and D9Sports.com is brought to you by Heeter Lumber.