PATIENCE PYAN and TINA L. SCOTT

The Merrill Girls Varsity Basketball Team hosted Ashland for the season opener on Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2022. It didn’t take long for the girls to take over on the court, after a couple rocky minutes to begin the game. Merrill’s defense and press was too much for Ashland to handle, forcing them to turn the ball over 30 times throughout the game. The turnovers were huge for the Bluejays, as they scored 33 of their 80 points off mistakes by the Oredockers.
Merrill High School Junior Mia Ott (38pts, 7stl, 2reb) led the night with 38 points, while Senior Maddie Drew (12 pts, 3stl, 3reb) added 12 points, and Mia’s twin, Maddy Ott (11pts, 6reb, 2stl), put up 11.
Prayla Pyan (6pts, 5reb, 2ast) made a return to the court, having sat out all last season with a torn ACL.
The Bluejays won 80-34.
“I thought our ball movement was fantastic,” said Merrill Girls Varsity Basketball Head Coach Mike Debuhr. “We shared the ball, which is seen by our 17 assists on 31 made field goals. We did a great job of playing for each other, caring for each other, and supporting each other. The other proud outcome was our ball pressure on defense. Turning defense into offense has been a big focal point for us during practice.”
Box Score
Ashland 34 @ Merrill 80