The Lady Bisons dropped the opening game and then lost the consolation contest by 19 points.

Clearfield coach Joey Castagnolo challenged his team when it made its way to Wingate on Saturday night, and his Lady Bisons responded.

Clearfield's three-point shooting got it an early lead and the inside game flourished, as the Lady Bisons, who had three players in double figures, handled Jersey Shore, 66-54.

"Last year we got embarrassed down here," said Castagnolo. "I told the girls, ‘let's go down there and win this tournament,' and I think we're very capable of doing it. The kids are playing with so much confidence, and you can see it just growing and growing.

"I really liked the balanced scoring, again. I thought our shot selection was very good tonight. ... We're passing the ball well, and I'm just so pleased with the effort."

The difference in styles between the teams was like night and day, as the Lady Bisons like to put the ball up from behind the three-point arc, while the Lady Bulldogs like to pound the ball inside to 6-foot-plus center Julie Stevenson.

Both were effective in the first quarter on Saturday, as Clearfield's Jayme Ryan knocked down a pair of three-pointers and Stevenson netted six points underneath the hoop.

Stevenson finished with a game-high 26 with eight coming in the final quarter when the game was in hand.

"We scouted this team, and we knew they didn't shoot the three," Castagnolo said. "We didn't have to worry about the three, so we packed it in on (Stevenson).

"Their big girl was very talented, but our defense was geared around her. ... (Stevenson scoring that many) is ok. We'll let her score right around her average and stop the other girls."

Ryan's torrid start in the first opened things up inside the arc the rest of the game, and senior Annie Janocko reaped the benefits.

Janocko, who also had a strong first quarter with eight points, got a pair of good looks on the inside in the second, while Amber Byerly and Madison Sopic also came up with points in the paint.

"The difference, I thought, was we hit the three and they didn't even look at the three," said Castagnolo. "I told the girls they were going to come out on Jayme, and to just dump it in. We just have to take care of the ball a little bit better."

The Lady Bisons led by 10 at halftime and took an 11-point advantage into the fourth, where they put the game away.

After trading buckets to open the period, Clearfield went on a 14-4 run to open up a 21-point lead with 3:19 remaining.

With Lady Bison reserves seeing time down the stretch, Jersey Shore pulled to within 11 with a minute to go with Stevenson leading the charge.

"At first we were in awe (of Stevenson's height), and then we saw her weaknesses," Castagnolo said. "Their whole team got frustrated because we were fronting her and backing her. Their passes really had to be precise to get the ball into her."

Janocko led the way with a team-high 16 points with Ryan (14) and Sarah Kovalick (10) also reaching double digits.

The Lady Bisons will face the hosts this evening at 6:30.

Clearfield dropped the junior varsity game, 37-35. Angela Moore paced the Lady Bisons with nine.

Clearfield-66
Porter 3 2-3 9, Kovalick 4 0-2 10, Ryan 4 2-3 14, Janocko 6 4-4 16, Byerly 2 2-3 6, Sopic 2 1-2 5, Peters 1 2-4 4, Moore 0 0-0 0, Butler 1 0-0 2, Zalno 0 0-0 0, Schultz 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23 13-21 66.

Jersey Shore-54
Siford 3 5-8 13, Martin 1 0-0 2, Haldeman 0 0-0 0, Griggs 4 1-2 9, Stevenson 12 2-5 26, Fioretti 1 0-0 2, Levan 1 0-0 2, Wheeland 0 0-0 0, Feerrar 0 0-0 0, Leese 0 0-0 0. Totals: 22 8-15 54.

Three-pointers: Ryan 4, Kovalick 2, Porter; Siford 2.

Score by Quarters

Clearfield                      16 16 11 23-66
Jersey Shore                  10 12 10 22-54