By JEREMY SELLEW
In a matchup of streaking teams in the Mon Valley Independent Summer Basketball League Girls Division, Dax Thomas State Farm made its case as the second-hottest team in the league Monday night at Marx’s Court Time Sports Center.
Fueled by a long run in the first half and a late run in the second half, the defending champions pulled away for a 57-45 win over Monessen Florist.
The win gives State Farm (4-1) a four-game winning streak after a season-opening loss to AMD Industries. It also put a stop to Monessen Florist’s two-game unbeaten mark.
“The biggest thing is we know that (Monessen Florist) is going to go as Emily Venick goes,” State Farm head coach Tommy Rodriguez said. “She has a non-stop motor and is involved in every play for them. So we know we had to slow her down.”
The plan worked as Venick was held to nine points and State Farm’s defense helped the team get out to a real good start.
After Penn Hills freshman Hannah Pugliese notched a three-point play to give her team a 3-2 lead, State Farm outscored their opponent, 21-4, over the next eight minutes to jump out to a 23-7 lead.
Most of the points were off steals, turnovers and Monessen Florist’s inability to handle pressure.
“Because we wanted to take Venick away, we really didn’t use full-court pressure as much,” Rodriguez said. “But we did a good job in the half court taking some things away and getting them into traps. It helped, too, that they weren’t hitting a lot of shots.”
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