Williamstown’s Arissa Burt (30) drives to the basket during Tuesday’s game at St. Marys. The Yellowjackets defeated the Blue Devils, 47-31. (Photos by Kerry Patrick)

WILLIAMSTOWN – Playing short-handed, St. Marys’ zone gave Williamstown fits throughout the second quarter and kept the Blue Devils on even terms early in the second half until the Yellowjackets decided patience was the formula in breaking away for a 47-31 win on Tuesday night.

“We were taking better shots in the second half,” said Williamstown point guard Quinn Bunch, who knocked down four of her five 3-pointers in the second half and finished with a game-high 19 points. “In the first half, we were taking one-pass shots, but we came out of halftime and started executing better which really helped. We got more open and got better shots.”

What was once a 23-23 tie in the opening two minutes of the second quarter resulted in a major drought down the stretch as Williamstown pitched a shutout for the game’s final seven minutes.

The Blue Devils dressed eight players, including Laney Watkins, who was just cleared to play after missing a week of practice. Dressed in street clothes was St. Marys’ second leading scorer this season and primary defender, Anna Bennett.

St. Marys, which hosts its girls and boys invitational beginning Thursday with an opening round game with Ritchie County, drops to 8-4. Brynnley Bulluck led the Blue Devils with 13 points.

St. Marys’ Laney Watkins (11) dribbles along the perimeter during Tuesday’s game against Williamstown. (Photos by Kerry Patrick)

“Long story short, I am really pleased with the effort we gave – we just ran out of gas against a better team,” St. Marys coach Fred King said. “We are OK. We gained something tonight. We have to develop other players.”

Despite falling behind 5-2, Williamstown gained the upper hand in the first quarter. Consecutive threes from Gracie Montgomery and two more from Anna Cosner spurred an 11-0 run. Cosner added a third 3-pointer in the period to put the Yellowjackets in front 20-13.

Bulluck picked up a second personal foul in the opening moments of the second quarter, but stayed on the floor and never experienced further foul trouble the rest of the game.

A 3-pointer from Bunch gave Williamstown its largest lead of the first half at 23-13, and ironically marked the last Yellowjackets points over the next 10 minutes.

A putback from Lauren Pritchett and another bucket from Bulluck in the final 30 seconds of the half sent the teams into the locker room with St. Marys only down by five at 23-18.

St. Marys’ Landrey Riggs drives between two Williamstown defenders, Tuesday night in St. Marys. (Photos by Kerry Patrick)

Despite limiting St. Marys to five points in the second quarter, Williamstown coach Danny Bunch admitted there were a few choice words for his team at halftime. In those same eight minutes, the Yellowjackets made just 1-of-10 shots from the floor.

“I was expecting to see some zone from St. Marys, especially when they were down a few players – they did a pretty good job,” Bunch said after his team won its fourth straight game and improved to 12-2. “We played pretty well in the second half. We really turned up the energy. We showed a little patience on offense and got some good looks inside.”

Bunch gave his post player Arissa Burt kudos for her work on the boards. Burt finished with eight points.

As for the offensive production, Williamstown shooters made 10-of-20 (50%) from the field in the second half. Bunch accounted for 14 points after halftime. One of her 3-pointers left her defender out of the picture as Bunch made a shot fake, took one step to the side and drained the open look nearly a foot still behind the line.

Bunch’s final three occurred near the tail end of a 9-0 run to finish off the game. Without hesitation and close to NBA range she caught her defender by surprise, took the jumper and hit nothing but nylon.

Williamstown point guard Quinn Bunch, who scored a game-high 19 points, looks for an open teammate during Tuesday’s game against St. Marys. (Photos by Kerry Patrick)

Coach Bunch, who also doubles as her father, commented on the progression his daughter has made since her freshman year and becoming one of the top shooters in the state.

“My freshman year, I had older girls who scored a lot of points for us, so I knew I didn’t have to do that as much,” Quinn Bunch said. “But as years have gone by, I know that’s my job – I needed to score some points. But I know when I’m not, I have my teammates that can.”

Williamstown two opponents this week – Doddridge County and St. Marys – have averaged just 33.5 points per game. The Yellowjackets cap off the week Saturday by playing at No. 2 Wheeling Central.

“This week has been a tough week all week,” coach Bunch said. “Wheeling Central is another big game. Absolutely, we will find out a lot about ourselves. It’s a hard place to play and we are going up against a great team.

“As I told the girls, there is nothing better if you can go to Wheeling Central and pull off the upset up there.”

Williamstown defender Anna Cosner (5) keys in on St. Marys; Brynnley Bulluck during Tuesday’s game in St. Marys. (Photos by Kerry Patrick)

Contact Kerry Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com

St. Marys girls basketball coach Fred King talks to his players during a timeout from Tuesday’s Game against Williamstown. (Photos by Kerry Patrick)