The long, slow bus ride to Rochester seemed to slow the Tigers in the early going but it couldn't keep them from their second straight win against Section 1AA opposition, a 52-41 triumph over John Marshall, Friday, Dec. 3.
Farmington overcame a sluggish start to outscore the Rockets 20-9 from late in the first half to early in the second to run their record to a perfect 2-0. Mariah Mincke's three-pointer sparked a big Tiger run shortly before intermission.
The Tigers led 28-12 at one time before John Marshall used free throws (17 for 26) to pull within 38-33 with six minutes to play. A quick 10-2 spurt for the visitors quickly stretched the lead back to 13.
"I'm not sure if the bus ride affected us," coach Jason Berg said, "but it was a very slow first half. The score was 8-3 with six minutes to go.
"We played well defensively. We probably got out of position too much in the second half. That's when we fouled and they got back in the game from the free throw line."
In a virtual carbon copy of the season-opening win over Owatonna, Taylor Meyer and Jordan Bridges scored 18 and 14 points respectively to account for much of the Farmington offense. Meyer made six of 10 field goal tries and went 6-8 from the foul line. Bridges made five of seven shots, including a three-pointer.
Elena Koch had another solid night on the boards with nine rebounds; Jamie Kenealy pulled down five. Paige Steele led in assists with five and Koch added four. Koch, Kenealy, Meyer and Shelby Calhoun each pitched in with three steals.
The Tigers make their home debut, Tuesday, Dec. 7, with a non-conference game with Hudson, Wisconsin.
