LocalSportsJournal.com
SHELBY – Fatigue was a major factor when Shelby’s girls basketball team fell to Manistee 54-47 on Thursday night.
The Tigers started the game playing an aggressive full court press on defense, keeping the Mariners from getting their guards going consistently. That allowed Shelby to ride Molli Schultz to a 12-10 lead after one.
The Tigers maintained that lead for the majority of the second quarter with Scultz, Kendall Zaverl and Brylee Friedman all playing key roles. Then, with two minutes remaining until halftime, Manistee came alive.
Callie Shively and Clear Wang traded buckets for Manistee, taking a seven-point deficit and flipping it on its head. The Mariners went on an 11-point run in the final minutes of the second quarter, putting them in front 29-25 at the break.
Shelby battled back in the second half, even tying things up at 38-38 after the third frame. Manistee kept the Tigers an arm’s length away however and Shelby lacked the stamina to make a push toward victory.
Manistee was led by Shively with 20 points and Wang with 18 points. The Mariners (3-2, 2-0 WMC Lakes) will be back in two weeks when they host Ludington on Thursday, Jan. 4.
Schultz notched 18 points for Shelby in the loss while Zaverl added 10. The Tigers fell to 4-2 overall with the loss but remained 2-1 in conference play. Shelby will also be back on Thursday, Jan. 4 when they travel to Holton.
