Amber Michaelis, playing her last home game, led the charge as Paynesville upended Long Prairie-Grey Eagle on Feb. 16.Michaelis tallied 24 points, six rebounds, and four steals to direct the Lady Bulldogs to a 54-47 win.
The early part of the game was dominated by junior Tanya Lieser. Lieser scored eight first quarter points to give the Bulldogs a 17-11 first quarter advantage.
Lieser continued to score as she hit two quick hoops in the second quarter. Long Prairie-Grey Eagle chose to keep the ball out of Lieser’s hands from the midway point of the second quarter to the conclusion of the game. Lieser was unable to take a shot in the second half.
The outside shooting of the Lady Bulldogs was forced to counter the defense played on Lieser. That answer was co-captain Amber Michaelis. Michaelis drained two three-pointers in the second quarter as Paynesville trotted into the half retaining the six-point lead they posted after one quarter.
Michaelis’ hot hand would continue as she pounded two more three-pointers in the third quarter. Outside shooting and the ability to limit turnovers to only eight for the game was the recipe the Lady Bulldogs needed to avenge a loss earlier at the hands of the Thunder.
Paynesville ends the regular season with a 9-13 mark overall and a 5-5 record at home. A respectable 5-7 conference record matches the number of conference wins in the last two years combined.
LPGE: 11 15 11 10 - 47
Paynesville : 17 15 11 11 - 54