Not that the Valley Christian girls basketball team needed any help in Friday night's 52-27 District 5-B victory over Seeley-Swan, but the Eagles got plenty of it anyway.
The Eagles did their part on offense and then proceeded to let Seeley shoot itself in the foot with turnovers. Valley Christian moved its record to 3-3 in league play and 7-4 overall with the win at its own gym.
Neither Valley Christian nor Seeley looked comfortable on the court in the first half. Each team had 15 turnovers, mostly on traveling violations, and both struggled with their shooting.
"We're working on trying to get our offense going," said Valley Christian coach Clint Morey. "We tend to stop and think about it. Then we don't play nearly as well."
The turnovers hurt the Blackhawks (2-5, 4-5) more than Valley Christian. Seeley limited itself to only six first-half points with all the miscues. The Blackhawks went to the free-throw line only once in the entire game. Abbie Christianson converted one of two attempts.
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"This showed we don't have much depth and Valley Christian has lots more depth," said Seeley coach Les Gordon.
The Eagles' tempo on offense was methodical at best, outscoring Seeley 21-6 by halftime.
"We go slow," said Morey. "We don't always mean to, but that's one of the things we have a month to learn to get out of our system and really start flowing. The good teams in district 5-B are really pushing us right now."
Seeley's troubles continued into the second half with 13 more turnovers while Valley Christian buckled down.
Senior point guard Joy Morey led the Eagles with 13 points, including 3-of-4 shooting from behind the 3-point line. Junior forward Carley Bollen chipped in 10 points and had five steals. Bollen had back-to-back steals that resulted in lay-ins during the first quarter.
Another bright spot for the Eagles was sophomore Rachel Haynes. The 5-foot-9 forward had 10 points, including two 3-pointers, after coming in with just over two minutes left in the fourth quarter.
"What's nice about our team is there's not one star. So any night a player can be on," said Morey.
Senior center Shyanne Feucht had a game-high 14 points for the Blackhawks.
| Seeley-Swan | 4 | 2 | 8 | 13 | - | 27 |
| Valley Christian | 11 | 10 | 13 | 18 | - | 52 |
SEELEY-SWAN - Shyanne Feucht 7-11 0-0 14, Jessie Diamond 2-6 0-0 4, Abbie Christianson 1-11 1-2 3, Crystal Wood 2-2 0-0 4, Lara Parker 0-2 0-0 0, Teshia Freseman 0-4 0-0 0, Sarah Gehrke 0-1 0-0 0, Anne Leishman 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 13-39 1-2 27.
VALLEY CHRISTIAN - Carley Bollen 4-9 2-2 10, Joy Morey 4-11 2-2 13, Deborah Ross 1-4 1-3 3, Shannon Christiansen 0-6 2-4 2, Amanda Henderson 4-8 0-2 8, Sarah Cahoon 1-3 0-1 2, Jennifer Job 0-1 0-0 0, Rachel Haynes 4-5 0-0 10, Aleisha Henderson 2-2 0-0 4. Totals 20-49 7-14 52.
3-point goals - Seeley-Swan 0-3, Valley Christian 5-8 (Morey 3-4, Haynes 2-2). Total fouls - Seeley-Swan 15, Valley Christian 8. Fouled out - none. Turnovers - Seeley-Swan 28, Valley Christian 21. Rebounds - Seeley-Swan 23, Valley Christian 18.
Reporter Nick Lockridge can be reached at 523-5265 or by e-mail at sportsdesk@missoulian.com