Almont drops nailbiter

ALMONT — Almont fell three points short when the final buzzer sounded, dropping a 47-44 verdict to North Branch in a Division 2 girls’ district basketball opening round encounter Monday night.

Imlay City High School is where the action unfolded.

With the outcome, Almont sees a 7-14 campaign conclude.

In Monday’s encounter, Almont grabbed a 23-20 edge after one quarter was complete.

The second quarter saw Almont net nine points as did North Branch, good for a 32-29 lead at the half.

When the action resumed, North Branch countered with a 12-5 third quarter edge. That put them ahead 41-37 with 24 minutes gone.

Almont then outscored North Branch 7-6 the rest of the way, only to fall 47-44.

Vivian Asaro (18 points, including three trifectas) paced Almont that evening. The Raiders also had Madi Derk (13 points, featuring a pair of treys), Rachael Johnson (10, with a triple) and Gabby Carlson (three) reach the scoring column.