PINCONNING - Feb. 4, 2010 - Ogemaw Heights held Pinconning to two points in the middle quarters of Thursday's NEMC girls basketball contest and moved into a second-place tie with Standish-Sterling with a 63-20 victory over the Spartans.

The Falcons led 26-11 after one quarter, with Ashley Thompson pouring in 15 points. But the Falcons really put on the defensive clamps after that, building a 39-13 halftime lead and keeping the Spartans stuck on the unlucky number through three quarters, 55-13.

"We shot the ball well early on and had good floor spacing," said Ogemaw coach Tim Hansen. "Defensively we didn't do anything special, we just played well and reacted nicely. We had a hand in their shooters' face most of the night."

The Spartans' efforts were hampered when center Cassidy Vieau went down with an ankle injury early in the game. The Falcons were able to hold Jessica Vidalez scoreless until the final minutes.

"We played a much cleaner game than Tuesday," Hansen said. "It gave us an opportunity to get everyone a bunch of floor time."

Thompson finished with a game-high 27 points in less than three quarters of play to lead Ogemaw (11-3, 5-2 NEMC) while Josie Wiltse added 10. The Falcons' win allowed them to catch SSC in the league standings as the Panthers fell to Tawas Area.

Shannon McDougall and Chelsea Adcock each scored four for Pinny (3-12, 1-6).