LADY BULLDOGS SINK TEETH INTO 2A RIVAL KELLY 55-29

For Kelly's girls, getting off shots was hard enough.

Making them was nearly impossible.

Notre Dame's defense totally shut down Kelly Thursday night as the eighth-ranked Lady Bulldogs (17-5) demolished the visiting 10th-ranked Lady Hawks 55-29 in a battle of the area's top Class 2A squads.

At the 1:10 mark in the first quarter, Kelly's Bridgett Riley scored a basket to make the score 17-7. The Lady Hawks didn't make another shot from the field until the 1:31 mark of the third quarter. That's a 14 1/2-minute stretch -- nearly half the game -- when Kelly (20-4) went 0-for-15 from the field. Kelly did score seven points during that span, but they all came at the foul line.

"I was very pleased with the way we played defensively," said Notre Dame coach Jerry Grim. "The last few games we've been playing good defense. We really played hard and with intensity tonight."

Said Kelly coach Curtis Finley: "They've got a very strong team and they're going to do well, obviously, this year."

Thursday night's game was a possible preview of the Class 2A, District 2 title game which will be played on March 3. Notre Dame has been seeded first in the tournament, while Kelly is second.

"This shows how far we have to get in a short time," Finley.

"I don't think they really knew what to expect," said Grim. "But tonight's game doesn't mean a thing. I've seen a lot of times where a team blows out another in the regular season, but loses in districts. Kelly's got a good team."

That may be the case, but Thursday's game was an obvious mismatch from the start.

Notre Dame scored the game's first six points and led 19-7 after the first quarter. The Lady Bulldogs put an insurmountable distance between themselves and Kelly in the second quarter and led 31-10 at halftime.

Kelly made just five of its 24 shots from the field through the first three quarters.

Notre Dame continued its dominance in the third quarter, taking a 50-16 lead into the final period. The continuous-clock rule went into effect in the fourth, but Kelly was able to outscore Notre Dame 13-5.

The Lady Bulldogs' defense was smothering. Not only did Notre Dame contest virtually every shot, but it forced 17 turnovers.

Kelly, which made all five of its shots from the field in the fourth quarter, ended up shooting 34 percent from the field (10 of 29).

Notre Dame, meanwhile, moved the ball effectively against the Lady Hawks' zone defense. The Lady Bulldogs got just a total of eight points from its two leading scorers -- Lisa Millham and Deana McCormick.

Instead, freshman Ashley Millham led the way with 14 points, while senior Jessica Seratti scored 11.

"In order for us to be a winning team that has to happen," said Grim. "We've got some girls who can score a lot of points, but they'll give it up to others just like they give it up to them."

"They're a very good passing team," Finley said. "They work the ball very well."

While Notre Dame was on fire, Kelly -- which was outrebounded 28-15 made matters worse by not being on top of its game.

"We just didn't play well," Finley said. "They're good, but we made them look better than they probably are."

Riley and Audrey Burford each scored nine points to lead the way for Kelly. Marissa Essner, who averages about 17 points per game, was held to just five.