GREENFIELD — A rough second half proved costly as the East Clinton girls basketball team dropped a 41-24 decision last Thursday to McClain in South Central Ohio League action.

East Clinton is 3-13 overall, 1-10 against SCOL rivals. McClain is 14-3 overall, 9-2 in the league.

Lacey Peterman led EC with six points while Paige Lilly had five points and two rebounds. Kaitlin Durbin had four points and two steals. Allison Tong chipped in with three points. Sam Gaddis, Bre Davis and Ciarra Cooper had two points and three rebounds each.

East Clinton was 9 for 34 from the field, including 3 for 7 shooting beyond the three-point arc. The Lady Astros made 3 of 8 free throws. EC had 19 turnovers while McClain had 14 turnovers.

The Lady Astros led 7-0 at the end of the first quarter and still maintained a 14-13 margin at halftime.

“We did an excellent job defensively, forcing Greenfield into some bad shots, while converting on our opportunities on offense,” EC coach Steven Gerber said.

In the second half, though, the homestanding Tigers took over.

“They are a young but experienced team and have been in these situations a lot,” Gerber said of McClain, who is in second place in the SCOL standings.

The Tigers outscored the Astros 14-6 in the third quarter.

“The Lady Tigers started going inside more and attacking,” Gerber said. “We talked a lot going in to this game about gaining respect and not backing down from anyone and I think, even in the loss, we accomplished that. We came out aggressive and played hard all the way til the end.”