Kinneer’s 27 leads Connellsville over Ringgold girls

By JASON BLACK

For the MV Independent

With the WPIAL playoffs set to begin in a matter of days, the Connellsville girls basketball team was looking to grab a little momentum during the final week of the regular season.

The Falcons were able to do exactly that as they played perhaps their best all-around game of the year in a convincing 55-24 win over visiting Ringgold in a Section 3 (5A) game on Tuesday evening.

Madison Kinneer had a monster game for the Falcons (6-6, 6-5) as she buried a 3-pointer in every quarter and finished with a game-high 27 points.

“Coming off a game (a loss to Albert Gallatin on Monday), in which we couldn’t make a basket to save our lives, we needed to come out and score,” Connellsville coach Shawna Little said. “With Madison coming in hot, and with other players making big shots, it definitely helped. That’s a career high for Madison.”

Kinneer got the first basket of the game, but the Rams (2-11, 2-8) responded when Kirra Gerard drained a 3-pointer to give Ringgold its first and only lead of the game, 3-2.

From there, the game mostly belonged to Connellsville. After falling behind by a point, the Falcons went on a 13-0 run and never looked back.

Kinneer closed the quarter with nine points while Arley Wilson and Hailey Murray also connected from the field, giving Connellsville a 15-3 lead.

Connellsville’s offense remained remarkably consistent throughout the game. In fact, the Falcons tacked on another 15 points in the second quarter. The highlight of the quarter was a steal by Wilson, which resulted in another 3-pointer from Kinneer. At the half, the Falcons led, 30-10.

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