Swanton’s Frankie Nelson dribbles the ball in the Bob Fisher Holiday Classic championship versus Leipsic held Tuesday, Dec. 28 in Swanton. The Bulldogs fell to the Vikings 31-20.
Paige Radel | AIM Media Midwest
Emma Crow of Swanton looks for room along the baseline against Leipsic in the championship of the Bob Fisher Holiday Classic held last week. The Bulldogs went 1-1 in the tournament.
Paige Radel | AIM Media Midwest
Jayden Hendricks handles the ball for Swanton during a first round matchup with Fayette at the Bob Fisher Holiday Classic on Monday, Dec. 27. The Bulldogs rolled to a 42-16 victory over the Eagles.
Max Householder | AIM Media Midwest
Swanton girls basketball fell to Leipsic in the Bob Fisher Holiday Classic championship Tuesday, Dec. 28 by a final of 31-20.
This low-scoring matchup started off with numerous possessions and a multitude of shots from both teams. Swanton’s Katlyn Floyd got the ball rolling two minutes into the game with a two-point shot.
Alaina Pelland kept the momentum for Swanton going, snagging a free throw after being fouled driving to the bucket.
Ava Henry answered back for the Vikings by knocking down a three followed up by a two point goal by Jocie Hermiller — also for Leipsic.
The quarter ended with Leipsic leading 5-3.
Whitney Langhals hit a 3-pointer to open the second quarter after a few subs came in and out for Leipsic, then unfortunately, a long stoppage took place due to an injury to Swanton’s Frankie Nelson. Krysten Martinez restarted the scoring for the Vikings with a deuce.
Trista Eitniear for Swanton took advantage of the foul trouble and Leipsic found themselves in making a free throw after being fouled.
It would not be enough to hold the Vikings off, though, as Marisa Hermiller added a pair of points to make the score 15-4 to end the first half.
Pelland came out with vengeance to begin the second half, driving down the center of the Leipsic defense, drawing the foul and hitting a free throw.
A Leipsic 3-pointer attempted to steal the momentum back, but Swanton’s Ashley Keaton answered back with a deep two.
The score was 19-7 as Leipsic called timeout with 4:39 left in the third quarter.
Martinez answered the Bulldogs with two made free throws, but Eitniear drove in making a layup while getting fouled. The clock winded down and the score came to be 21-9 with 1:39 remaining in the third.
Martinez hit another free throw to end the third quarter at 22-9 in favor of the Vikings.
The fourth quarter began with Pelland draining a three followed up by Emma Crow snagging a free throw. Langhals answered back with a two-point shot.
The score was set at 26-13 with 4:38 left in the game, but Henry rattled off two more points for the Vikings 38 seconds later.
Crow came back and hit a three for the Bulldogs to put the score at 28-16 with just over a minute remaining. Pelland and Eitniear each added two for Swanton, but the final ended 31-20 with Leipsic on top.
Dogs too much for Eagles
In the opening round matchup between Swanton and Fayette, the Eagles were held scoreless for the first 11-plus minutes as the Bulldogs cruised to a 42-16 win.
To start the game, Katlyn Floyd scored six points, while Frankie Nelson and Jayden Hendricks each added four apiece to help Swanton jump out to a 15-0 lead at the 4:39 of the opening frame.
Nevaeh Powers broke the Eagles’ drought by burying a triple 20 seconds later. However, Swanton kept a 15 point lead by the end of the stanza thanks to Emma Crow’s steal and score in the final seconds for a 21-6 advantage.
In the second quarter Fayette’s Emma Leininger opened with a pair of two-pointers that pulled them within 11, 21-10, but they would be outscored 12-3 over the final seven minutes of the stanza.
Nelson pegged the next nine Bulldog points for a 30-10 edge at the 3:44 mark. Alaina Pelland converted a steal into points for the Dogs, then Gracee Bingman of Fayette knocked down a triple.
Closing the third quarter scoring was Pelland with 1 of 2 from the foul line, giving the Dogs a 33-13 advantage entering the fourth.
Nelson led all scorers with 15 points. Leininger notched seven points for Fayette.
Max Householder contributed to this story.
