Blowout: Sullivan Cruises Past St. James

Sullivan opened the second quarter Feb. 8 against St. James with a 14-0 run, busting the game open en route to a 53-30 victory over their Four Rivers Conference rivals.

Mallory Shetley scored 19 points to lead the way for the Lady Eagles (18-4). Shetley and Bria Jones worked in tandem to decimate St. James in the second period. They took turns lighting up the Tigers over the course of the period, scoring all 16 points.

Jones finished with 15 points on five 3-pointers. Clare Shetley had 13 points. She scored eight points in the final period as Sullivan went up by 25 midway through. Lauren Hoffman and Hanna Johanning each scored three points.

Sullivan scored on the game’s opening possession when Clare Shetley fed Mallory Shetley from the high to the low post, but the Lady Eagles struggled to get in sync against St. James’ zone. The Lady Tigers expanded the zone to aggressively play the passing lanes and it kept Sullivan off the board for more than three minutes. Jones stepped up and drained her first 3-pointer with 4:08 to go, giving Sullivan a 5-4 lead.

Alyssa Rinehart put St. James on top with a 3-pointer at the 1:20 mark, but Jones responded on the next trip down, initiating a Sullivan run.

Mallory Shetley scored the first six points of the second quarter. St. James tried trapping her on the baseline, but she worked her way through the defense and finished with a reverse layup at the 5:26 mark. Sullivan took a 16-8 lead.

Jones knocked down her second 3 just 27 seconds later. After Mallory Shetley posted up the Tigers, Jones hit another 3 with 2:34 left. Sullivan led 24-8 and St. James retreated into a timeout.

Ashlyn Rinehart finally stopped the bleeding for the Tigers as she swished a 3-pointer out of the break. Sullivan built up a 26-13 lead at the half.

Jones began the third quarter with her fourth trey, keying an 8-2 run to start. Hoffman’s 3 with 3:31 left pushed Sullivan’s lead to 37-18 and the Lady Eagles carried a 40-24 advantage into the fourth quarter.

Sullivan went up 44-24 in the first minute. Clare Shetley later scored seven straight points in a little more than a minute, widening the lead to 51-27. She scored again with 4:44 remaining, Sullivan’s final bucket of the night.