Boys, girls Rebel squads dropped by St. James on Tuesday in Reserve

By JOHNNY PEPPO

Sports Editor

RESERVE– Riverside’s varsity teams slipped against district foe St. James on Tuesday as the Lady Rebels went to 0-2 in their conference while the boys went to 0-1.

The early game featured the Lady Rebs hosting the Lady Wildcats where the Riverside squad jumped on top early in the first quarter but were unable to adjust when St. James stepped up their defense with full court pressure later in the half.

After falling behind 27-19 at halftime, senior Jena Elfer helped to keep Riverside competitive on the offensive side, scoring a team high 24 points in the game. But St. James came up on the possession side of a constant series of turnovers and scored 51 points in the second half as they finished up with a 78-40 win.

St. James was led in the effort by Ariel Mitchell who got a game high 32 points.

The loss puts the Lady Rebels at 11-11, 0-2 in district, for the season while the Lady Wildcats improve to 13-14, 2-1. The Riverside squad’s schedule has them facing Donaldsonville in an away game before hosting John Curtis (4-4) this Tuesday for a district tilt.

The boys game followed the girls’, and looked much the same. The Rebels home court advantage was not enough to overcome being outmatched by St. James’ quickness as the Wildcats produced steal after steal and took a 25 point lead after the first quarter of play. Craig Duronselet and Luther Ambrose led in scoring, each with 14.

When all was said and done, a 76-23 final score drops the Rebels to 5-14 on the season, 0-1 in district, while St. James moves to 15-6, 1-0. The Rebels next home game comes this Tuesday against Curtis.