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Freshman Raegan Brimhall (17 points, 15 rebounds) cans the jumper during Friday night's victory over Riverbend.

Colonial Forge avenges loss to Riverbend , takes control of first place in Commonwealth

Friday night at Colonial Forge the Eagles got 17 points and 15 boards from Raegan Brimhall to defeat Riverbend, 47-36. The victory avenged an earlier loss this season to the Bears, and put Colonial Forge in sole possession of first place in the Commonwealth District.

As to be expected for a young team that starts two freshmen and two sophomores, Colonial Forge has had its ups and downs this season. But the Eagles are talented, and do feature two solid senior post players in J’Maia Joseph and Marin Curtin.

“We have a young team and we’re a new team–this is the first year for all of us playing together,” said Colonial Forge Coach Marquel Jones. “In our first games this year it was just adjusting to and trusting our system…that we as a collective works better than individuals. I do have some great individual players on my team, though.”

It wasn’t the best shooting night for the Eagles, but those individual players certainly showcased their skills on Friday. Brimhall, a freshman small forward, was aggressive on the glass and pushing the ball down the court. She got to the line 10 times on the night and demonstrated a capable mid-range shot.

Joseph and Curtin had 20 points and 18 rebounds between them, as Colonial Forge out-rebounded Riverbend 37-24. While Jones’ exciting backcourt of freshman Sydni Nicholson and sophomore Aiyana Demery didn’t shoot well, they contributed in other areas. Nicholson had a few spectacular passes to teammates for assists, and she and Demery spearheaded Colonial Forge’s defense, which held Riverbend to 27.9% shooting from the field.

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Sydni Nicholson and Aiyana Demery put the trap on Riverbend’s Charlotte Mullinax, as Forge coach Marquel Jones cheers them on.

“Defense wins ball games,” said Coach Jones. “Especially having offensive-minded personnel.”

The game went differently than the team’s first meeting, a 45-43 Bears win at Riverbend. Colonial Forge (9-1, 12-6) led most of the way, and the closest Riverbend got in the second half was 33-27, after a 7-0 Bears run.

“Everybody has the ability to score and handle the ball…to get out of that mindset and just be more collective was the difference in today’s game,” said Coach Jones. “Had we been more disciplined and collective in the first game it probably would have been a better outcome.”

The Bears’ season is far from over, and hope to get another crack at Colonial Forge in the postseason. Guard Charlotte Mullinax led Riverbend (7-2, 9-8) with nine points, while fellow senior Nyah Barnwell had eight points and 10 rebounds.

–Chris Jollay

all statistics are unofficial

RIVERBEND FG FT TP REB AST
BARNWELL 3-5 2-2  8  10  1
MULLINAX 4-10 0-2  9  3  3
S.ALEXANDER 0-6 2-2  2  3  0
POWELL 0-1 3-4  3  0  0
DURHAM 2-10 0-2  5  1  2
Via 1-4 2-4  4  5  0
Andersen 1-6 0-0  3  2  1
O.Alexander 1-1 0-0  2  0  0
TOTALS 12-43 9-16  36  24  7
Threes: Andersen 1-3, Mullinax 1-4, Durham 1-4,  S.Alexander 0-6
COLONIAL FORGE FG FT TP REB AST
NICHOLSON 2-10 2-8  7   2   3
DEMERY 0-9 1-2  1   1   1
BRIMHALL 5-14 7-10  17  15   2
JONES 0-0 0-0  0   0   1
J.JOSEPH 4-5 4-5  12   8   2
Woods 1-1 0-0  2   1   0
Curtin 3-10 2-5  8  10   0
TOTALS 15-49 16-30  47  37   9
Threes: Nicholson 1-3, Brimhall 0-2, Demery 0-5