JEFFERSON — Four players reached double digits as the Perry girls rolled to an 81-38 non-conference win over host Greene County Tuesday, while the Bluejays — missing two starters — were plagued by familiar woes in suffering a 65-27 loss.
The Jayettes (2-1) have displayed a new-found offensive prowess, averaging 72 points through three games after scoring only 29.6 points per outing last season. Four players are averaging in double-digits, and all four helped fill the nets Tuesday.
Molly Lutmer splashed four 3-points to lead the way with a game-high 27 points, with Jayna Kenney adding 13 points and Hannah Peterson and Lydia Olejniczak 12 apiece.
“Molly does a great job facilitating things from the one (position) and can either get her own shot or get shots for the other girls,” head coach Skylar Wolf said. “Having the balanced scoring is what we are after, and we are doing a much, much better job this year of playing together as a team and sharing the ball and we can see the results.”
“I really, really like Jayna’s game and how far it has come this year, and Hannah has done a great job of giving us senior leadership and adding scoring,” he added, “while Lydia is playing like a freshman with a lot of confidence and that is great to see.”
Perry was in command from the beginning, scoring repeatedly in transition or off the secondary break by continually pressing the pace. The guests held a 20-11 lead after eight minutes and entered the halftime break with a 42-22 advantage.
The Jayettes began to deny any second shots in the third quarter and swelled their margin to 73-28 en route to the win.
Ainsley Marburger hit two 3-pointers for six points, with Ashley Cerna adding five points and Kennedy Tunink three on one triple. Michelle Tobar contributed three points, with Lanie Fish, Odaly Perla and Phoebe Stewart also seeing valuable playing time.
The Rams fell to 0-2 after having fallen, at Ogden, Monday by a 54-20 final.
Izzy Bravard had 13 points and Sadie Wilson and Eliza Carlson eight apiece for the hosts. Natalie Heupel had four points, Bri Habben and Alexa Peters two each and Autumn Villebro one. Wilson and Carlson each hit a pair of 3-point shots.
Perry finished the game 8-of-14 at the foul line while Greene County was good on 10-of-22 attempts from the stripe.
The Bluejays (0-1) were without starters Brendan Ivory and Kato Dougan and struggled to find an offensive rhythm. The Jays held an 11-8 lead with two minutes left in the first frame, but Greene County (1-1) went on an 13-0 run over the next five minutes to open a 21-11 margin.
The Rams, who had fallen to host Ogden, 57-46, Monday, outscored their guests 32-5 in the second quarter to all but end the drama with a 45-16 halftime edge.
Perry was troubled by repeated turnovers and poor shot selection as Bluejay ball handlers simply could not separate from their defenders. The old bugbear of poor foul shooting reared its head again, with the Jays missing their first six from the line to finish just 7-of-22 at the charity stripe while the hosts hit 9-of-14.
A continual clock began late in the third quarter, which ended with Perry facing a 59-22 deficit, a margin the team could not close in the final eight minutes.
Keghan West hit two 3-pointers to lead Perry with 14 poitns. Jordan Long and Gage Laws had four points apiece, with Chase Archer adding three points and Avery Meister two.
Carter Morton’s game-high 23 guided the home team, with Zach Goff scoring 14 points while both Cael Fisher and Bryce Stalder added 10 points each. Four points from Skylar Ripperger, three from Nick Breon and one from Logan Kinsey closed the Ram scoring.
Morton had three treys, Fisher and Stalder two each and Breon one.
Greene County will host South Hamilton Friday while Perry entertains Carroll.
