CCA remains unbeaten, defeats Raiders in WaMaC West clash

WILLIAMSBURG — In its first five games of the season, the Class 3A No. 5 Williamsburg girls basketball team connected on 23 three-pointers at a 25.6% clip.

In a WaMaC West showdown with 4A No. 4 Clear Creek Amana (7-0), those numbers greatly improved, as the Raiders shot 9-for-20 (45%) from beyond the arc.

“Shooting was much better for us tonight,” Williamsburg coach Stephanie Dacey said. “It was great to see them have confidence.”

The improved three-point shooting wasn’t enough, as the Clippers avenged two close losses from last season, defeating the Raiders 60-48.

Many of the pieces are the same for this Clear Creek Amana squad, but this isn’t the same team as last season.

“It’s a totally different team this year, and we could see it on film,” Dacey said.

The top of the scouting board for any team facing the Clippers are Arizona State commit Averie Lower and all-conference guard Lena Evans. The two combined for 39 points, and Lower led all scorers with 23.

The Raiders threw what they could at the Clippers to limit their impacts.

“We knew they’d be a problem,” Dacey said. “We wanted to be on their hips [defensively] and make them work.”

Lower and Evans both hit tough shots at every level on the court.

“They’re dynamic scorers who can score from any part of the floor,” Williamsburg guard Taylor Sanchez said. “We were just trying to lock down those too, but they’re also well-rounded.”

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The one new piece to the Clippers’ squad is freshman Lydia Keller, who added 12 points.

Williamsburg took the first punch, leading 10-6 after a quarter as the Clippers went on a long scoring drought.

Sanchez knocked down consecutive threes in the final possessions.

In the second, both teams exchanged baskets before the Clippers closed on a 12-3 run for a 26-18 halftime lead. Lower, after a slow start, scored 11 in the quarter.

Williamsburg had spurts in the second half, but the Clippers held control until the finish.

The Raiders’ three-point shooting kept them in reach, hitting three in the third, and closing the quarter on an 8-2 run to cut the deficit to six.

Sanchez sank her fourth and fifth three-pointers in the final quarter to cut the deficit to five and six each time. In the final 1:30, the Clippers sealed the win with a 6-0 run.

The five threes nearly doubled Sanchez’s total on the season, as the junior led the Raiders with 16 points. Sanchez credited confidence from teammates for part of her 5-of-9 three-point performance.

“Our team is always confident in each other, no matter if something did not go well the game before,” Sanchez said. “I also try to shoot a lot in practice since I know that is my role on the team to be our shooter.”

Channing Becker scored 11 and made three three-pointers. Zoe Allen scored 10 points.

The Raiders head into the holiday break 5-2. Both Sanchez and Dacey agree on one area the team will seek to improve — limiting turnovers.

“The thing we’re going to be focused on is teams are coming up and pressuring us and causing us to have some lost possessions,” Dacey said.

“But I’m feeling good where we’re at. It was a really fun game and playing a team like that in 4A only gets us better.“

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