Just like the boys did a night prior, the Fredonia girls took care of business in front of a packed house.

The Hillbillies finally put an end to an 11-game losing streak in the best way possible, with a 39-30 victory over the rival Marauders in a Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association Division 1 West contest.

“This is my first year at Fredonia, so this is my first time in this atmosphere, and it is awesome,” said Fredonia head coach Brianne Davis. “Beating your rival is always fun, but getting a win after a long stretch of losing is always good, no matter who it is. It’s extra good when it’s Dunkirk.”

Fredonia (4-12, 1-6) scored the game’s first points on a layup by Gabriela Matos, the Hillbillies’ lone healthy senior.

Dunkirk’s Molly DiCara drives to the basket while being defended by Fredonia’s Ella Koopman. OBSERVER Photo by Ashleigh Brown

“(Matos) has really been a good role player for us. We talked about what she needs to do to see minutes and she has fulfilled all of those,” Davis said. “She grinds day in and day out.”

Dunkirk (8-8, 3-4) scored its first points of the game at the 4:00 mark of the opening frame, as both teams played within a possession on the scoreboard the entire period. The Marauders led 6-5 after the physical first quarter.

Although the game was low scoring throughout the night, the raucous crowds kept the energy up on both sides of the gym the whole time.

“I love to see the fans getting crazy and loud. I think it gives a lot of energy to the kids on the floor,” said Dunkirk head coach Quinn Bankoski. “I’m glad that we had a great turnout from fans. Everybody was super supportive for our girls, they always have been.”

The Marauders got a fortunate bounce as a 3-pointer in the first 30 seconds of the second quarter by Molly DiCara bounced around the rim and in for a 9-5 lead. Dunkirk extended its lead to 12-7 on a 3-pointer by Gracey Kenner with 4:01 left in the first half.

Fredonia’s Alana Holt blocks a shot by Dunkirk’s Anadallane Rodriguez during Friday’s Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association Division 1 West game in Fredonia. OBSERVER Photo by Ashleigh Brown

But from that point on over the next eight minutes of play, it was all Fredonia.

Fredonia claimed a 13-12 lead with 1:31 left in the first half on a Makayla Tabone jumper from the free-throw line. Thirty seconds later, Matos hit a contested layup to extend the lead to three points, 15-12, going into halftime. Matos scored 8 of the 15 points for Fredonia in the first half.

Although the teams were never separated by more than 10 points at any time in the game, Fredonia maintained its lead the entire second half.

“I thought there was effort the whole game. Sometimes you just can’t pull through and get the win,” Bankoski said.

The Hillbillies scored the first two buckets of the second half, then finished the third quarter with a corner 3-pointer banked in off the glass by Francesca Pucci. After the shot banked in, Fredonia carried an 8-point advantage into the fourth quarter, 27-19.

A layup by Matos with 4:02 left in the game put Fredonia ahead by 10 points — the largest lead of the game. Ana Rodriguez hit a 3-pointer to bring Dunkirk back within four points with 2:33 left to play, 33-29, but Fredonia held on and closed out the victory from there.

Fredonia got 10 points apiece from Matos and Pucci to lead the six Hillbillies who scored on the night. Matos also had six rebounds.

In addition to Matos, Ashlynn Delcamp and Jordan Lucas played strong in the post, as well. Delcamp had 6 points in the second half, while Lucas had 6 points and a team-high 12 rebounds on the night.

“That’s huge, especially in a close game like this,” Davis said of Lucas’ performance on the boards.

Dunkirk’s Rodriguez led all scorers with 18 points in the game, including 10 points in the fourth quarter.

“Rodriguez is a fantastic player. She’s just a playmaker. She’s hitting 3s with two people in her face, she’s creating space … 18 points in this atmosphere is just fantastic,” Davis said.

According to Bankoski, part of Dunkirk’s struggle to score on Friday was a pair of injuries to junior starters DiCara and Shyla Karin.

“Shyla Karin rolled her ankle in the middle of the game, and Molly DiCara has been having back problems since we played Olean two weeks ago,” said Bankoski. “Injuries happen, but they are both juniors and I’m excited to see what’s in store for them next year when we play Fredonia again.”

Up next, the Marauders have a nonleague home game on Monday against Silver Creek with an emphasis on highlighting women in sports. The following night, the Marauders celebrate Senior Night against Allegany-Limestone.

Fredonia is at Southwestern on Tuesday in league action.

“This is really what we needed to fuel the rest,” said Davis of the win on Friday. “This really gave the girls that uplift we need approaching playoffs in the next few weeks.”

DUNKIRK (30)

Salerno 0 0 0, DiCara 2 1 6, Karin 1 0 2, Kenner 1 0 3, Pacheco 0 1 1, ARodriguez 5 5 18, Jacques 0 0 0, Santos 0 0 0, TRodriguez 0 0 0, Alfaro 0 0 0. Totals 9 7 30.

FREDONIA (39)

Diaz 0 0 0, Lucas 3 0 6, Normand 0 0 0, Tabone 1 0 2, Pucci 4 0 10, Delcamp 3 0 6, Koopman 1 3 5, Holt 0 0 0, Gullo 0 0 0, Wegrzynowski 0 0 0, Matos 5 0 10. Totals 17 3 39.

3-point goals–DiCara, Kenner, ARodriguez 3, Pucci 2.

Dunkirk 6 6 7 11 — 30

Fredonia 5 10 12 12 — 39