Meagan Schulz Photo

OTSELIC – In front of a packed gym, the Otselic Valley Lady Vikings defeated the DeRuyter Rockets 50-38. Earlier this season, DeRuyter handed the Vikings a five point loss. But with their backs against the wall for a bid into sectional play, Otselic Valley knew they need a different showing than the first time the two teams faced off.

With a strong start to the contest, the home team jumped out to a 18-9 lead. Of the 18 scored by the Vikings, only six were scored by stand-out Amber Meigs. The rest came from balanced scoring by the rest of OV’s starting five.

In the second quarter, the Rockets gained a small advantage, outscoring the Lady Vikings by one point. But Otselic Valley held their lead from the first quarter to head into the halftime break up 26-18.

Coming out of the intermission, Meigs poured in the baskets, scoring 18 of her game-high 28 in the second half.

DeRuyter’s Paige Russell tried to be the answer the Rockets need to stay in the game. However, Russell’s seven points in the fourth was not enough to pass the home team. Russell finished with a team-high 18 for DeRuyter.

“These last 2 games are what we need to keep us moving forward with wins,” said Otselic Valley’s head coach Nicholle Lippert. “We have four more league games to play so it is crucial to be playing the best basketball we can.”