SYCAMORE — The Rochelle Lady Hubs leaned on their defense and effort to hang tough during their Interstate 8 Conference varsity basketball game against Sycamore on Friday night.

Senior Abby Metzger scored a team-high 13 points for the Lady Hubs, who were able to shut down Sycamore’s role players throughout the evening. Rochelle had its hand full with Spartan guards Quinn Carrier and Sadie Lang, however, as the two Sycamore players combined for 36 points to lead the Spartans over the Lady Hubs 57-40. Rochelle (4-3, 0-1 Interstate 8) will return to the hardwood on Monday evening, when the Lady Hubs will face Stillman Valley at home.

“I thought the effort was there,” head coach Jon Gehm said. “At times, we really flew around and made some plays on defense. We talked about taking some chances now and then and we did a nice job of that. We got tired in the second half and Sycamore really wore us down with their guard play. We couldn’t keep it together at the end, but I thought we really battled today.”

Sycamore held an 18-14 lead after the first quarter, where Carrier finished four layups at the basket and Lang drained two 3-pointers to spark the Sycamore offense. Senior Kendyl Darby stepped up during the first half for the Lady Hubs, using her size and ball handling abilities to attack the basket and draw contact under the rim. Darby, who drilled a 3-pointer in the second quarter, went 6-for-8 from the free-throw line in the first half and finished with 11 points.

“Kendyl attacks,” Gehm said. “She attacks the basket and she’s not afraid of contact and we really appreciate that. She gets to the free-throw line and she capitalizes there really well. She’s a good free-throw shooter and she’s shooting the ball a lot better  from 3-point range this year.”

Rochelle remained within striking distance at halftime, but the Spartans took full control of the game during the third quarter, where Sycamore held the Lady Hubs to just two field goals to turn a 30-23 halftime lead into a 44-30 advantage. Carrier continued to be the catalyst for Sycamore, beating the Rochelle defense off the dribble for a trio of layups. The sophomore guard Carrier led all players with 19 points, while the freshman guard Lang added 17 for the Spartans. 

The Lady Hubs didn’t go away quietly, however, as freshman Audrina Rodriguez sank a 3-pointer from the elbow and finished a layup at the basket for five of her 11 points in the game. Rodriguez has provided Rochelle with an offensive spark off the bench this season.

“It’s impressive,” Gehm said. “Instinctually, Audrina knows basketball. She does a lot of things that we don’t have to tell her to do and she’s one of the few players we have right now who can make straight line drives to the basket. She doesn’t try to run around the perimeter and she has a quick first step, which allows her to go right to the basket… She’s off to a great start.”