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First-half deficit sinks Troubie JV at Lincoln

First-half deficit sinks Troubie JV at Lincoln

STOCKTON, Calif. – Senior guard Sydney Teoh netted a team-leading 16 points, including 3 of 4 from three-point range, while sophomore Tayli Paeu-Lindgren and junior Lexi London also scored in double digits, but a fourth-period comeback came up short in a 68-52 loss to Lincoln Friday afternoon.

The Troubadours drop their third straight game to slip to 6-7 for the year. The Trojans improve to 10-4 overall.

Paeu-Lindgren chipped in 11 points and grabbed 17 rebounds for her seventh double double of the season. London drained a pair of three-pointers en route to 10 points, while junior Laila Mendoza hit a trey as part of her nine total points. Overall, St. Francis shot 6-for-13 from long range.

The Troubies' final three-pointer came with 3:29 to go in the final period. Teoh delivered a backdoor feed to Karly Okamoto in the lane at 3:51 to bring the deficit to 56-48, then Okamoto returned the favor by assisting Teoh near the left free-throw extended. This cut the margin to 56-51 for the smallest Lincoln lead since the 1:05 mark in the first, but the Trojans countered with a 12-1 finish across the final three minutes of the game.

In fact, the three-point game dominated the first frame, with the two teams combining for 10 makes from beyond the arc. Senior Lailah Leonard-Roberts buried three straight treys to boost the Trojans to a 16-6 start, while junior point Touraya Blakey closed the period with another to give her team a 27-19 lead. Teoh scored two bombs of her own, with London and Mendoza also connecting in the first.

Overall, Lincoln never trailed in the contest, with Mendoza's corner three early in the contest resulting in the game's lone tie at 6-6. The Trojans held a 40-30 lead at the break, then maintained that margin with a 52-42 edge entering the fourth. Save for that Teoh three-pointer in the fourth, Lincoln held at least a three-possession margin throughout the second through fourth periods en route to the win.

The varsity setback followed St. Francis junior varsity's 49-26 loss to Lincoln. Emmy Cheatham scored nine points with her team's lone three-pointer, Lena Mundhenk added eight points, while Jocelyn Villaflor came off the bench of six points and four rebounds. However, the Troubies surrendered 18 straight points to start the game and trailed by a 39-8 margin at halftime before outscording their hosts in the second half.

Villalfor scored four of her points within the span of a minute down the final stretch of the second period. Her steal and fast break marked the first SF bucket since Jocelyn Dickinson assisted Cheatham with 2:17 left in the first. Villaflor then made 1 of 2 on consecutive bonus trips to the free-throw line. However, her best play resulted in a teammate's score: Villaflor made a diving save to maintain possession along the baseline. Her pass found Cheatham, who immediately fed Mundhenk for a bucket at 6:49 in the fourth.

Mundhenk scored again at 2:16 on a Villaflor assist, then she hit the second of two free throws with 34 ticks remaining for her eighth point. Villaflor also had the dime on the sole SF three-pointer, finding Cheatham for the open look with a minute left in the third.

The two SF teams now begin Sierra Foothill League play with a road doubleheader at Del Oro on Monday. Game times are 6 p.m. for JV, 7:30 for varsity. This marks the first SFL season for St. Francis, which had competed in the Delta and Delta River Leagues since 2002.