Combining their inside punch with their outside touch, the Page girls earned a solid road victory. The Lady Patriots (7-2, 3-0) knocked down six 3-pointers and put four players in double figures while maintaining a share of first place in the district. Page finished 18-of-18 from the foul line, including 12-of-12 in the fourth quarter, in the victory. Faith Wilken and Lili Wilken scored 15 points each, and McKenzie Cochran added 14, including a pair of 3-pointers. Junior post player Olivia Wilson had 11 points and seven rebounds for the well-balanced Lady Patriots, who led the game from start to finish. "The stakes were high tonight, and we were ready for this one," said Wilson, who was strong in the paint throughout the night and also stepped outside and drained a 3-pointer. "We're really excited to be where we are right now — it's a big change from last year — and we're excited to see how the year is going to progress."
Page earned the win despite a huge night from Franklin freshman Sydnay Ryan, who made six 3-pointers and scored a game-high 21 points. Kate O'Neil added 11 points for Franklin (5-4, 1-2). "I felt like our defense was really good tonight, even though it might not look like it since we gave up all those 3s," said Page coach Ron Brock. "But the truth is, they have a lot of really good shooters, and they can make shots even when you're hanging all over them." Page built a 30-20 lead at the half, and stretched the advantage to 40-25 early in the third quarter after consecutive baskets by Wilson and Cochran. But Franklin quickly roared back, putting together a 12-0 run in the span of just over 90 seconds to trim the Page lead to 40-37. The surge included a pair of 3s from Ryan and one by Jilian King. Kate O'Neil capped the run with a conventional 3-point play.
Page, however, converted four free throws in the final 25 seconds of the third quarter — two of which were the result of a technical on the Franklin bench — to push the lead back to seven, 44-37, at the end of the period. Page then methodically pulled away in the fourth quarter, eventually rebuilding a double-digit advantage, 54-43, on two free throws by Delaney Noe with just over two minutes to play. "It's great that we are able to keep scoring, no matter who is in the game," said Wilson. "So far this season, we've had five-plus people scoring almost every game — and it's great not to have just one key player." The Lady Patriots built their biggest lead of the first half, 28-18, after Wilson and Kate Walker knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers midway through the second quarter. Moments later, Cochran converted a layup at the buzzer, giving the Lady Patriots a 30-20 lead at the break.
BOX SCORES: GIRLS
Page – 18 12 14 22 — 66
Franklin – 13 7 17 11 — 48
Page (66) – Lili Wilken 15, Gobble 4, Faith Wilken 15, Noe 4, McKenzie Cochran 14, Walker 3, Olivia Wilson 14.
Franklin (48) – King 8, Sydnay Ryan 21, Allee 2, Doran 6, Kate O'Neil 11.
3-pointers — Page 6 (Cochran 2, F. Wilken 1, L. Wilken 1, Wilson 1, Walker 1). Franklin 8 (Ryan 6, King 2).
Free throws — Page 18-18. Franklin 8-12.
Source: Williamson Herald