The James River girls ended the 2023 portion of their basketball schedule on a high note as they defeated Waynesboro, 63-53, in overtime in Springwood last Friday.
“This was a big win for us,” said River coach Ryan Firebaugh. “We, as a team, thought we let one slip away from us at Waynesboro back before Christmas break.”
River trailed by a point at halftime, 23-22, but the girls were getting good shots.
“We missed a lot of easy shots around the basket early and late in the game,” said Firebaugh. “We left a lot of points out on the floor tonight with the shots we missed.”
The momentum shifted back and forth in this game. River was down six points in the fourth quarter but came storming back to tie and send the game into overtime
“Once we went to overtime, we jumped on Waynesboro and didn’t look back,” said Firebaugh. “We threw the final punch.”
Photos by Leigh Downey
The Knights scored the first eight points in overtime and then hit their foul shots when the Little Giants tried to come back by fouling. Caitlin Canada led the team with 19 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Honesty Liming had 12 points and nine boards, Siera Davis had 11 points and Audrey Benson had nine.
“We talk about answering adversity when it is thrown at you, and the girls answered it,” said Firebaugh. “I’m super proud of this team and the way they fight and battle game after game.”
The win evened River’s record at 5-5 on the season and the Knights will return to the court tonight at Floyd County, always a tough place to play. On Friday the girls have their first home game of the new year when they host Alleghany.
