The Huskies picked up their first win of the year 43-33 at home against Scio Dec. 11 in girls basketball.
“They were really excited,” said Coach Michelle Knight. “It was a fun win. It was fun because we had so many people from the community watching.”
A scrappy game, the Huskies held onto a lead through the first half before Scio nearly caught up in the third quarter while the Huskies scored just four points, but Sweet Home scored 23 in the final quarter to secure the win.
“They just decided to run away with it,” Knight said.
Freshman Adaira Burger came up from JV to lead scoring with 10 points. Becky Belcher and Alana Silver each added nine points, and Kennedi Waldrop scored eight.
Also scoring were Emmily Pace with three; Natalie Rodgers, two; and Kate Hawken, two. Playing but not scoring were Shahalie Erickson, Danielle Tressel, Anna Coleman and Christina Belcher.
“The thing that stood out to me in that game is the entire team was one team (on the bench or on the court),” Knight said. “They were supporting each other, and they all wanted it no matter what their role was.”
The Huskies traveled to Tillamook Friday, losing 58-33.
“It’s not all in the wins,” Knight said. “Natalie (Rodgers) had five three pointers on Friday against Tillamook. She decided to start shooting, and it paid off. That was amazing. It really was.”
Rodgers, the point guard, led scoring with 17 points.
The team is continuing to work on improvements every day, Knight said. “We work every day on free throws. We work our layups every day in practice. We work on defense.
“They want to get better. This is the kind of group that decides they want to do something, they do it. They’re working hard, and they want it.”
The team was scheduled to travel to Elmira Tuesday at 5:45 and host Central Linn at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.
They will compete in a tournament at Regis High School in Stayton Dec. 28 and Dec. 29.