Perryville knew the challenge it faced Thursday night.
Taking on one of the top teams in Class 5, the Lady Pirates battled early but couldn’t keep pace with Hillsboro in a 61-38 loss at the Perry County Middle School gymnasium. Hillsboro improved to 21- 3, while Class 4 Perryville fell to 12-10 after its second straight defeat.
“They’re ranked fourth in Class 5 for a reason,” Perryville coach Jason Dreyer said. “They’re kind of known for their defensive prowess. They’ve got a couple girls that are really good, and they’re strong and physical.”
Hillsboro set the tone early, building a 14-8 lead after the first quarter and extending it to 30-16 by halftime. The Lady Hawks continued to control the tempo in the third quarter, outscoring Perryville 20-13 to push the margin to 50-29 heading into the final period.
Perryville struggled to find consistent offense against Hillsboro’s defensive pressure, shooting just 29.8 percent from the field and committing 19 turnovers. The Lady Hawks, meanwhile, shot 43.8 percent and finished with 13 assists, consistently creating quality scoring opportunities.
Janie Porter led Perryville with nine points, while Abygail Amberger added 11 and Zoe Hoehn finished with 4. Amberger, the Lady Pirates’ leading scorer, faced constant defensive attention throughout the night.
“They did a really good job guarding Aby,” Dreyer said. “When the girl we rely on a lot to score is having a hard night, we need to do a better job as a team of being more aggressive and working together.”
Hillsboro was led by Ashley Hilton, who scored 23 points, and Carlie Galczynski, who added 14.
Despite the loss, Dreyer said the experience against a higher-class opponent could prove valuable.
“It’s a learning lesson,” he said. “We’re younger, and we’re not as physical as they are, but games like this help us get better.”
Perryville will look to regroup as the postseason approaches, hoping the lessons learned translate into stronger performances ahead.
FREDERICKTOWN 50, PERRYVILLE 30
FREDERICKTOWN — A cold shooting night and slow start proved costly for Perryville on Feb. 17, as the Lady Pirates fell to Fredericktown 50-30.
Fredericktown took control early, building a 10-8 lead after the first quarter and steadily creating separation the rest of the way. The Lady Pirates managed just five points in the second quarter and trailed 20-13 at halftime before Fredericktown used a 17-3 third-quarter run to put the game out of reach.
“We came out and got off to a really bad start,” Perryville coach Jason Dreyer said. “We fought back and made it close, but after that, we weren’t making shots. When our shots weren’t falling, that just took all the energy out of us.”
“We came out and got off to a really bad start,” Perryville coach Jason Dreyer said. “We fought back and made it close, but after that, we weren’t making shots. When our shots weren’t falling, that just took all the energy out of us.”
Abygail Amberger led Perryville with 13 points, while Madeline Gremaud added five. Zoe Hoehn, who had recently returned to the lineup after being cleared earlier in the week, finished with four points as she continues to work her way back into game shape.
Fredericktown was led by Lauren Hale with 15 points and Stella Rehkop and Laila Stephens, who added key contributions to help the Ladycats maintain control.
Dreyer said the lack of offensive production affected his team’s overall performance.
“We shot 8-for-52 for the game, about 15 percent,” he said. “We just didn’t have much energy, and it kind of showed the rest of the night.”
Perryville closed the game with its best quarter offensively, scoring 14 points in the fourth, but the deficit was too much to overcome.
