GUNNISON—The Gunnison Valley girls’ basketball team didn’t get off to the most optimal start, but by last weekend, there were definitely some positives.
After being bombed in their season opener by Juab, 43-18, last Tuesday, Gunnison recuperated and delivered a much better performance the following Thursday with a convincing road win over Freedom Preparatory Academy, 65-27.
It was two ends of the Gunnison hoops spectrum in one week. The Lady Bulldogs’ sub-20-point effort against Juab echoed the three times they were held under 20 points last season, as senior Raven Pickett led with 10 points and eight rebounds.
Conversely, Gunnison’s 65 points against Freedom Prep were the most points the Lady Bulldogs have scored in a regular season game since Dec. 28, 2018, when they put 71 points on 1A Escalante. Junior Rilee Dyreng led nine different scoring players for Gunnison as she poured in 14 points, while junior Molly Blackham backed her up with 10 points.
Against Juab, Gunnison was held scoreless for the entire second quarter. It was the first time Gunnison had been held scoreless in a quarter since Jan. 18, 2018, in a 61-15 loss to Millard.
Conversely, Gunnison dropped 22 points on the head of the Lions in the first quarter of play, the most in any quarter they’ve played since Nov. 26, 2019, when they hung 23 on North Sanpete in the first quarter.
The Lady Bulldogs moved to 1-1 overall to start their season. They are on the road at American Leadership Academy this Tuesday, then after Thanksgiving, they’ll be on the road again to take on Draper APA on Tuesday. Their home opener will be the following Thursday against North Sanpete.
