AMBOY – After posting a 2-2 mark at the Oregon Thanksgiving Tournament and losing senior guard Addison Pertell for 4-6 weeks with a broken thumb, the Amboy girls basketball team has been in one tough contest after another.

Now nine games into the season, the Lady Clippers have a 4-5 record.

In the fifth game of the season on Tuesday, Nov. 26, Amboy lost to Serena 30-25 at Serena. Senior Tyrah Vaessen led the team with 11 points and junior Bella Yanos added nine. Vaessen also led with five assists and Yanos had a team-high five rebounds.

Bureau Valley was the next opponent on Saturday, Nov. 30 in Manlius. Amboy fell a point short in a 55-44 loss.

“Unfortunately, we got a technical foul called on our scorebook in the late third quarter. Our book was correct, but Bureau Valley did not copy the names correctly,” Amboy coach Mike McCracken said. “They made both free throws and got the ball out. We lost by one. Every official I have talked to since said we shouldn’t have gotten the technical.”

Yanos scored 17 points and hauled in nine rebounds, while sophomore Alexa McKendry had 14 points. Vaessen had a near triple-double with 13 points, 15 rebounds, and eight assists.

In the seventh game of the season on Monday, Dec. 2, Amboy defeated Polo 45-25 behind another strong performance from Yanos. The junior scored 15 points and had seven rebounds. Vaessen grabbed 14 rebounds, dished four assists, and scored four points.

The first home game of the season for the Lady Clippers was Thursday, Dec. 5 against Northwest Upstate Illini Conference South Division foe Eastland.

Vaessen scored 14 points and tallied nine rebounds, and senior Emily Sachs added 10 to help the Lady Clippers win 33-31.

In the Amboy Shootout on Saturday, Dec. 7 against Riverdale, the home team fell 58-48.

Junior Jillian Anderson recorded a game high 19 points, while Vaessen tallied eight rebounds, eight assists, and seven points.