Third Quarter Run Propels Sullivan Past St. Clair

St. Clair was able to muck up the first half just enough Friday, but Sullivan burst out the gates in the third quarter and left the Bulldogs behind.

With runs of 10-0 and 8-0, Sullivan bullied St. Clair 53-34 to snap their only losing streak of the season. The Lady Eagles (16-4) got 19 points from Clare Shetley and 15 points from Bria Jones, who buried three 3-pointers, grabbed five rebounds, four steals, registered four assists and blocked two shots.

Shetley led Sullivan with nine rebounds, dished three assists and had two steals. Mallory Shetley scored nine points to go with eight rebounds and three steals. Katie Creek had five points, Kya Harbour had four and Sophie Sellers had one.

St. Clair hung around in the first half despite a first quarter where they committed five turnovers, scored just two points and kept Sullivan off the board for the first two-plus minutes. Jones supplied a pair of 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions to give the Lady Eagles a 10-2 lead, where it stood entering the second period.

Sullivan went on a 9-2 run to open up a 21-9 lead with 1:50 remaining and led 23-13 at halftime.

St. Clair scored the first four points of the third quarter, with Haley Buscher’s fastbreak layup off a turnover cutting Sullivan’s lead to 23-17. From there, Sullivan got on track. Clare Shetley and Creek each hit 3-pointers. Clare Shetley scored, then Mallory Shetley scored on a putback with 3:20 remaining, giving Sullivan a 33-17 lead.

Graci Shirey broke up the run, but Sullivan came right back with an 8-0 run to push the lead to 41-19. Mallory Shetley had a three-point play with 21 seconds and Clare Shetley banked in a jumper off an inbound pass at the buzzer, sending Sullivan to the fourth quarter up 46-21.