The James River girls picked up a signature basketball win on Monday when the Knights defeated Carroll County in Springwood, 47-34. It was just the second loss of the season for the visiting Cavaliers and their first in the Three Rivers District.
“First ever win over Carroll County in school history!” said River coach Ryan Firebaugh. “We came out with a fire ready to play. Super proud of my girls, they battled and overcame adversity during certain parts of the game. They never gave up.”
River led 25-17 at the half and 40-25 after three quarters. The only quarter they were outscored was the fourth, but that was just 9-7 as the Knights held on for the win.
Caitlin Canada had a big game for River with 26 points, 12 rebounds, a pair of assists and a steal. Kelsi Maydian had nine points and three steals, Honesty Liming had eight points and nine rebounds and Jalen Thompson had seven boards.
“Caitlin played really well,” said Firebaugh. “We stepped it up on defense and our defense created a lot of our offense. We came together as a team and worked together well.”
With the win the Knights moved into the black with a 10-9 overall record. The Knights are 4-4 in the district and can get over .500 in that category when they play at Radford Friday night. River beat Radford in Springwood last Friday, 60-30.
“We came out from the tip with energy and intensity and took care of business,” said Firebaugh. “Our defense was really good, forcing Radford into some tough shots, and our offense was firing on all cylinders.”
Canada had 19 points and 11 rebounds in this game to go with four assists and three steals. Maydian had 10 points, Liming had nine and Keira Crawford had seven. Liming had eight rebounds and Audrey Benson had seven boards and three steals to go with six points.
River also played Floyd and Alleghany last week, splitting those games. They beat Floyd, 46-42 at home, but lost at Alleghany Thursday, 45-28.
Next week the Knights will return the trip to Carroll on Monday, then wrap up the regular season with a home game against Patrick County on Tuesday and a home game against Glenvar on Thursday, February 8.
