I am still proud of the effort these girls put in and know that we will learn from this game and use it to work towards our goals in the postseason.”

Coach Chris Strampe

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The Lady Blazers square off against Newcastle at home on Saturday, February 15 at 4 p.m.

TORRINGTON – The Torrington High School Lady Blazers controlled the scoreboard for three quarters of a physical game against the Lady Bulldogs from Bridgeport, Nebraska at home on Tuesday, February 11.

Bridgeport rallied to turn the tables in the final eight minutes of regulation and take the lead by several possessions. While the Lady Blazers came within one possession of matching Bridgeport in scoring, the Lady Bulldogs ultimately pulled ahead by seven points to post the win, 44-37.

Bridgeport has been incredibly successful in Nebraska the last few years and was off to a 19-1 start this year, so we knew we were in for a tough game," coach Chris Strampe said. " We started off running the fast break with intensity, resulting in a 15 point lead in the second quarter.  From that point on, they started to chip away at us, making it a 2 point game at the end of the 3rd.  Unfortunately, we made some poor decisions and had a few things go against us in the 4th quarter that led to us falling short.  I am still proud of the effort these girls put in and know that we will learn from this game and use it to work towards our goals in the postseason. "

The Lady Blazers dominated the first quarter against Bridgeport with Torrington more than tripling the Lady Bulldogs in scoring, 17-5.

Senior Olive Osmera forced a turnover on Bridgeport’s opening possession with a steal. Taking possession, senior Teryn Stokes lined up for a close-range shot.

The Torrington defense shut down Bridgeport’s subsequent attempts to score with steals from senior Jaycee Hurley, junior Kennedy Reinhardt and Stokes.

Junior Natalie Long tossed in a layup and Hurley netted a jumper. Reinhardt drained a 3-pointer and Hurley sank a free throw. Long made another layup and converted an and-1.

Stokes grabbed a steal, setting Reinhardt up to score from inside the paint.

The Bridgeport offense found its footing in the second quarter to outscore Torrington, 13-8. Stokes, Reinhardt, Long and Hurley kept the Lady Blazers on the scoreboard with a bucket apiece and Torrington remained ahead by seven points at halftime, 25-18.

Bridgeport cut into the Lady Blazers’ lead in the third quarter, tallying 11 points while holding Torrington to six. Stokes, Osmera and Long each netted a basket.

Torrington maintained the lead by one possession, 31-29, as the fourth quarter commenced.

The Lady Bulldogs overtook Torrington early in the final quarter and pulled ahead, 36-31. Osmera whittled Bridgeport’s lead down to one possession, 37-34, with a free throw and a trey at two minutes remaining.

Bridgeport responded with a four-point run. Senior Madix McIntosh wrangled a steal and scored on a fastbreak, making it a one-possession game again (41-37) at 25 seconds.

Bridgeport tossed in a free throw and a jumper before the clock hit zero to seal its win.

Long led the Lady Blazers in scoring against Bridgeport with 11 points. Reinhardt collected seven points with six apiece from Stokes and Osmera. Hurley and McIntosh rounded out the tally with five and two points, respectively.

Stokes paced Torrington on the boards with eight rebounds. Long pulled down seven rebounds and Hurley six.

The Lady Blazers return to conference play this weekend with back-to-back games against 3A Northeast rivals Douglas and Newcastle. On Friday, Torrington travels to play Douglas at 5:30 p.m. The Lady Blazers host Newcastle on Saturday at 4 p.m.

Torrington is currently No. 2 in the 3A East with an undefeated conference record and an 8-6 overall record.