Ram girls keep rolling

PORTALES - Clovis High's girls appear to be making progress this season, but the Lady Wildcats aren't good enough to spot a team like Portales eight points right out of the gate.

CHS managed only a pair of 3-pointers in falling behind 20-6 early in the second quarter on Saturday night. In addition, the Lady Cats lost 6-foot senior post Hanna Nussbaumer, their leading scorer and rebounder, for the rest of the half after she committed two fouls in just over three minutes.

Meantime, the Lady Rams were pretty much clicking on all cylinders and notched a 52-37 victory over Clovis at the RAC.

Junior guard Taris Rippee tallied 18 points, including 8-for-8 from the foul line, while junior guard Riley Shillings scored all nine of her points on a trio of first-half 3-pointers. The Lady Cats (3-2) made a couple of runs during the course of the game, but Portales (2-0) was never seriously threatened.

"We pushed hard with our press (defense)," said the 5-foot-6 Rippee, who has grown several inches from her sophomore year. "I felt like we were really clicking as a team and getting open looks."

Rippee and Shillings each had six points in the opening stanza. Clovis broke through on a 3-pointer by junior Yvonne Fuerte with 4:18 left in the period, then fell behind 15-3 before getting a 3 from sophomore Alandra Romero at the 1:55 mark.

"That's what killed us," CHS girls coach Jeff Reed said. "You can't spot that to a team like Portales in the first quarter. They'll make a few mistakes, but they won't make enough to give us a chance.

"By the time we settled down, it was a 12-point game. Every time it seemed like we got a little momentum, we'd do something to give it right back to them."

Nussbaumer returned at the start of the second half. Although she led Clovis with seven points, all three of her field goals came in the final stanza.

PHS girls coach Wade Fraze said his squad has room to improve, and should do so as the season goes on.

"They're ready to play," he said. "They're not in basketball shape yet. We've got to refresh some things, but I think we did that during the game."

Rippee, who also had six rebounds, four steals and three assists, said that once the Lady Rams had control, the main thing was not letting Clovis back in the game.

"We didn't really change anything," she said. "We weren't really scared (of a comeback). We just said, 'We can't let up.'"

Both teams were slated to open district play on Tuesday night, the Lady Rams visiting Roswell Goddard in District 4-4A and the Lady Cats playing at Carlsbad in District 4-5A.

Goddard brought a 3-0 record into Tuesday's tilt, including a season-opening 49-43 victory over Clovis at The Rock on April 1.

Fraze expected the Lady Rockets would provide a stiff challenge.

"Goddard's really good; they're aggressive and fast," he said. "Most of their kids play soccer, so they're already in good shape."