NORTH LEWISBURG – Triad hung with Graham for a while, but the Falcons pulled away for a 61-44 victory in non-league girls basketball on Wednesday.
In the first quarter, Triad rode Alea Ferguson to a 13-13 tie, while Kayla Tullis did most of the work for Graham.
But Triad turned the ball over too many times, with Graham turning the takeaways into points the other way more often than not.
“We had 16 turnovers in the first half, when we were playing pretty well on defense,” Triad Coach Jeff Merklin said.
The Falcons picked the Cardinals apart en route to a 29-18 lead at halftime.
“We were able to take care of the ball offensively and this is one of the best games we’ve had as far as transition and finishing,” GHS Coach Steve Flora said. “Defensively, it was another great team effort.”
In the second half, Triad cut down the turnovers and ramped up the offense, but a few shots went awry and Graham was efficient.
“When you don’t convert the opportunities, when you can’t pick up the ball or you miss layups … the most important thing that Triad basketball has to do is improve our skillset,” Merklin said. “They always get complimented on how hard they play. The question is, ‘is this a sport they want to excel at?’ And they can.”
Ferguson led all scorers with 19 points for Triad, but Graham got good balance to secure the win.
“It was good to see us come off of a game like we had at Shawnee and perform to that level instead of taking another dive on the rollercoaster,” Flora said.
Tullis had 17 points for Graham while Katie Nash and Maddi Vanscoy had 12 each.
On Saturday, Graham (3-16, 2-9 CBC) hosts Greenon and Triad (3-13, 2-7 OHC) hosts Fairbanks.
