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Bulldog swingman Marcus Saunders #32 soars over the Panthers for two points on an inbounds play under the basket. Photo by Lou Martin.

The Virgin Valley High School, boy basketball team rallied in the second quarter, behind the play of Marcus Saunders and Cody Burnside to win going away 52-30 over Division 1V opponent Pahranaghat Valley. Saunders led the Dawgs in scoring with 15 points followed by Burnside with 11 points. Point guard Jarett Tietjen added nine points in the Bulldog win.

Bulldog coach Sean FitzSimons tinkered with his lineup for this non-league affair against the small school Panthers. The new lineup could not get their offense rolling until leading scorer Saunders came off the Bench late in the first period with the score tied at 8-8. Saunders brought a huge roar from the Bulldog faithful, taking an inbound pass from Tietjen, putting it down for a Bulldog lead 12-10 after one period. The Bulldogs defense held the Panthers to 7 points in the second period while putting up 17 points of their own to take a 29-17 lead at the break. Leading the Dawgs resurgence were Saunders and Burnside with 5 points each in the period.

The Bulldog defense continued to pressure the Panthers in the third period giving up only five points while the offense added 15. Saunders and Burnside led the Dawgs with 8 and 4 points respectively making the score 44-22. Coach FitzSimons used his reserves the rest of the way. Reserves Tony Urias and Kenny Carter split the final 8 points giving the Dawgs a 52-30 victory. The Bulldogs will travel to Desert Pines on January 16 in an important league matchup. The Jaguars are 4-0 in league play, having crushed four league opponents easily. Leading the Jaguars are guards Capri Uzan and Coby Myles in scoring with 17.3 and 16.9 points per game respectively. Big man Trevon Abdullah adds 15.7 P.P.G. and 10.1 boards to a well-rounded attack.