Coming off the Christmas break and heading into the new year, the Eureka Lady Tornadoes traveled to Fredonia to take on the Fredonia Yellowjackets and delivered a dominant performance.
Eureka welcomed back Brenna Rucker, who returned to action after an ACL injury that had sidelined her since Jan. 24, 2025. Rucker wasted no time making her presence felt, scoring the Lady Tornadoes’ first basket off an offensive rebound before finding senior Hannah Perrier underneath for an easy bucket. Rucker’s return was nothing short of impressive, as she finished the night with a double-double, totaling 21 points and 11 steals.
Six Lady Tornadoes scored in the opening quarter, led by Lydia Mason’s eight points, capped by a three-pointer at the buzzer as Eureka jumped out to a 21-3 lead.
The Tornadoes’ defense swarmed the Yellowjackets in the second period, holding Fredonia scoreless while the offense put on a shooting clinic. Rucker, Elle Coulter, Britta Mongeau, and Arabella Shepherd combined to knock down six three-pointers in the quarter, with Mongeau drilling a buzzer-beater to end the half. Rucker caught fire with 14 points in the period, helping Eureka build a commanding 52-3 halftime lead.
Mongeau picked up right where she left off to start the third quarter, burying a corner three, while Shepherd led the Tornadoes with seven points in the frame. Eureka outscored Fredonia 17-6 in the quarter and cruised to a 73-10 victory.
The Lady Tornadoes shared the ball extremely well on the night with a team high 20 assists, with Shepherd leading the team with six, while Rucker and Coulter each dished out five. Coulter led Eureka on the glass with six rebounds, and Rucker anchored the defense with her 11 steals.
Scoring for Eureka: Rucker 21, Mongeau 14, Shepherd 11, Mason 8, Perrier 8, Coulter 7, Sydney Lindamood 2, Alaina Westerman 2.
Up Next
The Lady Tornadoes will be back in action Friday, Jan. 16, when they travel to Burlington to face the undefeated, No. 4 stateranked Burlington Wildcats.
