The Perry varsity basketball teams made the trip to Huxley Friday evening to take on the Ballard Bombers, and were beaten soundly in both games of the doubleheader. The girls team fell by a score of 59-25, and the boys lost 86-36.

The Jayettes showed some strong defense through the first two quarters, only allowing Ballard to score 27 points by halftime. However, the stifling defense of the top-ranked Bombers held Perry to just 10 points by the break. The hosts then put even more space between the two teams in the second half, holding the Jayettes to just four points in the third quarter while putting up 11 of their own. Ballard put the game away in the fourth, in spite of Molly Luther coming alive a bit en route to a 12-point night. By the final buzzer, the Bombers had earned a 59-25 victory, their 17th straight this season.

In the second matchup of the night, Ballard jumped all over the Bluejays from the opening tip, running out to a 30-9 lead after one quarter. Their foot remained on the gas pedal in the second, thanks to the hot shooting of sophomore Ashton Hermann who had 18 first half points. The Bombers led at halftime 57-16. Perry gave their best shot in the second half, led by senior Brendan Ivory who scored nine of his 17 points the last two periods, but the hole was too deep to climb out of. Ballard would cruise the rest of the second half to an 86-36 victory.

The losses drop the Jayettes to 6-12, and the Bluejays to 3-13. The two squads will next hit the hardwood on Tuesday as they travel to Boone for another doubleheader.