The Riverside Girls’ basketball team fell in the Class 1A-District 1 Regional Final 47-40 Wednesday night to the St. Albert Saintes. The Bulldogs ended their season at 20-4 on the season.

The two heavyweights came swinging out of the gate especially from the free throw line. Sophomore Guard Sophia Fenner was able to get to the charity stripe on two occasions in the first quarter and knocked down two free throws. Just three minutes in, Senior Guard Ryleigh Ewalt went down with an apparent knee injury on a non-contact play. Ewalt had to be helped off the floor.

The Bulldogs were down a key bench player early and played a little unsettled the rest of the first quarter. The Saintes began to warm up on the offensive side of the basketball. Junior Forward Avah Underwood earned two trips to the free throw line hitting three free throws on four attempts. Sophomore Forward Lexi Pearce hit two baskets from mid range to extend the St. Albert lead to 17-9 after the first quarter.

St. Albert Junior Forward Molly Wise came out firing in the second quarter by hitting a quick two followed by a corner three to give the Saintes their largest lead of the night 22-9. This caused Bulldog Head Coach Mark Jeppesen to call their first timeout of the evening. After the break, a spark was lit in the Riverside offense. The Bulldogs began to work the ball inside resulting in Sophomore Forward Sydney Somers with a quick four points and short jumpers from three other Bulldogs. All of a sudden it was 22-21 at the half.

The third quarter began, and the aggression ramped up on both sides of the ball from the two teams. It was a battle at the line in the third including six free throws from Riverside and four from St. Albert. Foul trouble began to rise as the two teams had several starters with multiple fouls. The depth of the benches began to play a factor in the third as Riverside Senior Forward Ayla Richardson knocked down too massive field goals to keep Riverside within one after the third quarter.

It was 34-33 St. Albert going into the fourth quarter, and the anticipation, stress, and excitement was building inside Abraham Lincoln High School. The Saintes relied on their leading scorer Avah Underwood, with the St. Albert offense beginning to feed the Junior Forward. Underwood was able to draw contact and earn several trips to the free throw line icing the game for the Saintes.

Riverside ends their season at 20-4 with many influential seniors leaving their mark on the program and a solid number of returners for next season.