By Cort Reynolds
The visiting Bluffton High School girls basketball team built a lead with strong defense and held off a late Riverdale charge to win 25-21 in a low-scoring non-conference contest Saturday afternoon, January 21.
The Pirate girls limited the Falcons to just 18 percent field goal shooting and only nine points in the second half to post the road win.
Bluffton held Riverdale without a basket in the third quarter, and to one point in the period to build a 10-point lead going to the fourth quarter.
Riverdale scored the first eight points of the final stanza to pull within a basket, but came up short.
Falcon Maddie Biltoft bounced in two foul shots with 1:42 remaining to inch the Falcons within 23-21.
At the 1:26 mark, Pirate post Ayla Grandey was fouled on a half hook and swished a pair of free throws to build the lead back to four. Riverdale’s Mariah Bonham missed a triple, and Pirate Sami Scoles rebounded.
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