FORT LORAMIE — Fort Loramie had a 10-day stretch without a game earlier this month, and it coincided with a few days off of school due to winter weather.

The rest and practice time looks to have helped the Redskins get ready as postseason play nears.

Fort Loramie dominated the last three quarters and beat Lima Bath 67-41 in a nonconference game on Saturday afternoon, less than 48 hours after beating Jackson Center 62-36 in a Shelby County Athletic League contest.

Thursday’s win was the first game Fort Loramie (16-2) had played since a lopsided victory over Botkins on Jan. 15. That capped a busy holiday weekend for the Redskins, which had lost by 12 points to Thornville Sheridan in the Classic in the County at Berlin Hiland two days before.

“We take losses as learning experiences every time,” Fort Loramie senior forward Summer Hoying said. “Sometimes, it just shows you what you need to work on in practice to perfect your game and get better every day.

“… I think we’re good, but we’ve got a ways to go. We have big plans and big dreams for this team, so we’ve just got to keep working hard every day.”

The Redskins, which are ranked No. 1 in this week’s Associated Press Division IV state poll, unofficially forced Bath into 32 turnovers on Saturday. They forced 25 turnovers and had 16 steals in Thursday’s win over Jackson Center.

“Our full-court pressure is getting better and better,” Fort Loramie coach Carla Siegel said. “It took us a while to get going, because of injuries at the beginning of the year. We couldn’t really do (a full-court press then).

“I’m impressed with the way our team is playing. Their communication on the floor offensively and defensively is great. On offense, the ball goes to the high post, and we have a baseline cutter calling for the ball. It’s a beautiful pass, and we get a wide-open layup.

“I think this team is gelling at the right time. They’re playing hard together. They’re enjoying the game together, and it’s fun to watch.”

Siegel said she was initially concerned about the team having such a long period without any games, but said it may have been what was needed.

“In hindsight, it was probably a good opportunity to rest the legs, reenergize and get ready for the second part of the season,” Siegel said. “I think that we’re playing reenergized. We’re playing with a lot of energy, and we don’t look like we’re tired.”

Junior forward Avery Brandewie scored a game-high 19 points. She is one of a few players who dealt with minor injuries in the first half of the season.

She is back at full strength, and aside from leading Fort Loramie in scoring, she also had a team-high nine rebounds and five assists on Saturday, in addition to four steals. She scored 14 points and had eight rebounds, five assists and four steals in Thursday’s win.

“Not only is she scoring and rebounding, but she’s stealing the ball and finding her open teammates,” Siegel said. “Her stat line has been phenomenal the last few games. She’s come back from that ankle injury and is really playing strong for us.”

Brandewie, who is 5-foot-10, scored many of her points in the post on Saturday, as did Hoying. Hoying finished with 16 points and had five rebounds and three assists.

Hoying (5-11) is in her second year on varsity. She’s worked her way up through the program since her freshman year and is in the starting lineup this season.

“I’m so happy for her,” Siegel said. “She has definitely has blossomed a lot this year. Last year, she was more of a defensive specialist for us. She didn’t do a lot of scoring. But this year, we’re getting the scoring, the rebounding and the defense from her. She’s pleasant to have on the floor.

“We’ve got Victoria (Mescher) too, so we’ve got these three tall players out there who are working seamlessly together. It’s so much fun to watch them play.”

Mescher (6-0) scored seven points, as did Skyler Albers and Maddie Shatto. Jaden Rose had seven steals and four assists.

Lima Bath senior forward Anne Oliver (6-0) led the squad with 11 points while senior center Claire Foust (6-1) scored 10.

The Wildkittens (11-5) finished the first quarter strong and led 16-12 heading into the second.

But Foust and Oliver each got into foul trouble and had to head to the bench, and the Redskins turned up their defensive pressure, forced a bunch of turnovers and took control.

Fort Loramie scored the first 20 points of the quarter; Bath didn’t score until a pair of free throws by Izzy McDermott in the final 10 seconds, which cut the gap to 32-18 at halftime.

“Their foul trouble kind of changed their game plan, but I was proud of our girls,” Siegel said. “I got on them after the first quarter because I thought we were taking too many perimeter shots and not getting the ball inside.

“The second quarter, we did a much better job moving the ball offensively and got some easier shots that we wanted.

The Redskins outscored the Wildkittens 14-13 in the third and 21-10 in the fourth.

Fort Loramie is scheduled to play at Fairlawn on Tuesday and to host Houston on Saturday in SCAL games. The team has already clinched at least a share of an SCAL title and can clinch an outright title on Tuesday.

The Redskins are scheduled to travel to Russia on Feb. 8 to wrap up SCAL play. They’re scheduled to host Marion Local on Feb. 13 for their final regular-season game.

Jackson Center wins 3rd in last 4 games

Aside from losing on Thursday against Fort Loramie, the Tigers have won three of their last four games, including a 35-26 win over St. Henry on Saturday in Jackson Center.

Addie Biederman led Jackson Center (11-7) with 14 points while Presley Reese and McKinley Reichert each scored seven and Macy Klopfenstein scored six.

The Tigers are in fourth place in SCAL standings. They’re scheduled to travel to New Bremen on Tuesday and to Fairlawn on Saturday.

Big game by Botkins’ Pitts

Botkins junior DeeDee Pitts scored 10 points, brought down 10 rebounds and had nine steals in the squad’s 45-21 win over Ansonia on Saturday.

Camdyn Paul led the Trojans with 15 points and Jana Metz added eight points.

Botkins (8-10) has won three straight games. The squad is scheduled to host Houston on Tuesday and travel to Russia on Saturday.

Vordemark scores career high against Fairborn

With junior guard Jordan Scully getting a game off to rest, Larkyn Vordemark led the Yellow Jackets in scoring in a 53-22 win over Fairborn on Saturday in Sidney.

Vordemark, a junior guard, scored a career-high 21 points, all of which came in the first three quarters. Though she’s been a steady scorer all three years, she had not reached 20 points in a game before Saturday. She had scored 19 points three times earlier this season.

Vordemark ranks third among MVL players with an average of 14 points per game. She averages 5.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.8 steals per game. She had a season-high 11 rebounds in a 44-35 win over West Carrollton on Wednesday.

Vordemark scored seven points in the first quarter on Saturday to lead a 14-2 scoring edge by the Yellow Jackets. The team scored the first 11 points of the second and led 27-9 at halftime and 41-12 at the end of the third.

Kiara Hudgins added 11 points for Sidney (15-4, 13-2 MVL) while freshman forward Olivia Foy scored nine off the bench.

Sidney still has a one-game lead in overall MVL standings and has a big week ahead. The squad is scheduled to host rival Piqua (3-14, 2-13) on Wednesday and is slated to travel to Vandalia-Butler (13-4, 12-3) on Friday for the first game of a girls/boys doubleheader.

Butler is in second place in league standings. The Aviators beat the Yellow Jackets 40-38 on Dec. 28 in Sidney.

Reach Bryant Billing at 937-538-4818, or follow @SidneyOHSports on Twitter and @BryantBillingSDN on Facebook.