Before tip off, the newly renovated gym was dedicated to Barb Crill. Crill was a well-respected figure in local sports and a beloved member of the community. She led the Marquette girls basketball team to the first Class A State Championship in 1976.
It was a slow start in the first quarter, but both teams shook off the dust and an exciting, evenly-matched ballgame took shape.
Negaunee stayed out front for the duration of the first half, though not by much. The Miners would pull away with a five point lead or so. The Redettes would get within one possession, but couldn’t quite pull ahead.
Avery Ledy had a strong first half with 11 points to herself. Sydney Kivi had five, and Rachael Hunt had two.
The Miners led the Redettes 20-18 at the bottom of the second quarter. But it didn’t take long for Sydney Kivi to even the score at the top of the third.
Kivi and Sophie Bartlett showed major hustle with several offensive rebounds each. Bartlett also managed several turnovers to keep the Redettes in the ballgame.
There was a little push and pull throughout, but a burst of offensive energy led to a 34-31 lead for Marquette going into the final quarter.
Negaunee began the fourth quarter with a blistering 9-0 scoring run to recapture the lead.
Marquette was able to tighten the gap to within one possession several times, but the Miners pulled away and sealed their win with 56-51 at the buzzer.
It was a battle from start to finish, but the Redettes were unable to break the Miners’ two-year winning streak against them. That didn’t stop Avery Ledy from scoring 21 points in the game, though. Sydney Kivi wasn’t far behind with 18 points overall.
The Redettes will travel downstate on Friday, December 14th to take on Traverse City Central. The Redmen play before the girls at 5:30 pm, and the Redettes game starts at 7:00 pm on Fox Sports Marquette 105.1-99.9.
Listen to a recording of the live broadcast.
