By Cort Reynolds

Playing at home, the Bluffton High School girls basketball team gave league-leading Leipsic all it could handle before losing 51-49 in a Northwest Conference battle Thursday evening.

Bluffton fell to 9-5 overall and 1-3 in the NWC with their first home loss in eight games. The Viking girls improved to 14-1 and 5-0 in the NWC to stay a half-game ahead of 4-0 Delphos Jefferson atop the league standings.

The Pirate girls were tied 12-12 after the first period as Julia Mehaffie scored five points and hit a triple. An 11-5 second stanza gave the hosts a 23-17 halftime edge and thoughts of an upset.

Leipsic pulled within a point with an 18-13 third quarter heading to the final stanza. 

The Vikings sank nine of 12 free throws in the fourth period to hold on for the two-point win.

Leipsic outscored the Pirates 34-26 after intermission.

Sophomore post Ayla Grandey and Sami Scoles each tallied 18 points for Bluffton. Scoles netted seven points in each of the second and fourth periods.

Grandey canned two triples and had at least four points in each quarter. Mehaffie added seven points.

Viking Whitney Langhals netted 21 points to lead all scorers. She scored eight points in the decisive fourth frame. Marisa Hermiller added nine of her 14 markers in the momentum-changing third period.

Bluffton canned 16 shots from the field, including 12 deuces and four shots from three-point land. 

Bluffton converted 13 of its 15 free throws (87 percent).

The Vikings sank 17 field goals, hitting on 11 two-pointers and six triples. They converted 11 of 19 foul shots (58 percent).

Bluffton 49 (9-5, 1-3 NWC)

Eachus 1 0-0 2, Giesige 1 2-3 4, Mehaffie 3 0-0 7, Scoles 5 7-8 18, Grandey 6 4-4 18, Fleece 0, Utendorf 0 0-0 0. 

Totals: 12-4/13-15/49. 3-pointers: Scoles 1, Grandey 2, Mehaffie 1.

Leipsic 51 (14-1, 5-0 NWC) 

Martinez 0 0-1 0, Kirkendall 2 0-2 4, Henry 1 3-4 5, Hermiller 5 2-4 14, Langhals 6 6-8 21, Haselman 3 0-0 7. 

Totals 11-6/11-19/51. 3-pointers: Langhals 3, Hermiller 2. 

1 2 3 4 F

Leip 12 5 18 16 51

Bluf 12 11 13 13 49

Now 7-1 at home, the Pirates entertain non-conference local rival Pandora-Gilboa (1-11) Saturday afternoon, Jan. 14.