Published: February 26, 2008 04:14 pm            

Lady Cardinals roll at Jackson County 77-66

MOnticello — The Wayne County Lady Cardinals met 13th Region foe Jackson County last

Tuesday night at General Gym, in the first game of a girls-boys

doubleheader.

Wayne County entered the contest with a 16-8 mark and was coming off a

69-51 road win over East Jessamine. The Lady Generals, one of the top teams

in their region, owned a 19-7 record and were coming off an 81-58 win over

Lee County in their previous outing.

Wayne County used a 22-8 run to close the first half and placed four

scorers in double figures, en route to an impressive 77-66 win. Junior guard

Heather Stearns netted a team high 22 points with a game high 7 rebounds to

pace the winners. Stearns shot 6 of 14 from the field, with 2 3-pointers and

connected on 8 of 9 free throws, in just under 29 minutes of play.

Rachel Bristow made 6 of 14 field goal attempts, with 2 3-pointers and

drained 3 of 5 free throws, to post 17 points and 5 rebounds. Kayla Jones

tallied on 7 of 8 free throws and 3 of 4 field goal attempts to total 13

points with 4 assists and 4 boards, as Wayne County enjoyed a 35-20 rebound

advantage.

"This was a very good win on the road, at a very tough place to play. We

ran the floor well, made our free throws and really pounded the backboards.

I thought this was an excellent team effort, with four scorers in double

figures and everybody that played contributed. This was one of our better

efforts of the season and this is certainly the time of the year to do that.

Offensively we were able to do some good things that we hopefully can build

on the rest of the way," said Lady Cards head coach Tim Pyles.

Freshman guard Kayla Bowlin added a solid night in the win. Bowlin

scored 10 points, grabbed 4 rebounds and contributed 3 assists, while

Emilee Burton sparked the reserves with 9 points and 5 rebounds. Courtney

Duncan totaled 6 points and 3 boards, as six different Lady Cards scored in

the win.

"We were able to get up and down the floor pretty well, which allowed us

some good looks at the basket. I liked the way we forced the tempo and were

able to draw some contact and get to the free throw line," said Pyles.

Jackson County, which dropped to 19-8, placed two players in double

figures, led by the game high 30 points of Kourtney Tyra. Tyra shot 9 of 14

overall from the field and converted on 11 of 12 free throws, with 3

rebounds, in 23 minutes of action. Amber Whitehead added 15 points and 3

boards, as nine different Lady Generals scored in the contest.

"Jackson County has a very solid basketball team and a couple of very

nice players, especially Kourtney Tyra. Tyra made some big shots all night

and we struggled to defend her," said Pyles.

Kourtney Tyra exploded for 11 points in the opening quarter, as Jackson

County claimed a 20-19 lead. Wayne County opened 5 of 14 from the field and

tallied on 4 of 12 3-pointers in the period.

Rachel Bristow scored 13 points in the first half and 7 in the second

stanza, as the Lady Cards used a 22-8 run to push to a 41-28 halftime

advantage. The locals shot 41 percent in the half, while the Lady Generals

made 11 of 21 attempts for 52 percent.

"We certainly did some good things in the second quarter and were able

to slow Tyra down for a little while," said Pyles.

Tyra quickly regained her first period form and added 13 points in the

third frame, as Jackson County used a 23-15 spurt to close the score to

56-51 after 24 minutes. Heather Stearns paced the Lady Cards with 8 points

in the quarter.

The trio of Kayla Jones, Courtney Duncan and Emilee Burton all netted 5

points each in the final minutes, as Wayne County made 8 of 11 free throws

down the stretch, to seal the 77-66 win.

Jackson County finished 24 of 42 overall from the field for 57 percent

and tallied on 3 of 9 3-pointers for 33 percent. The hosts converted on 15

of 25 free throws for 60 percent and finished with 12 turnovers.

Wayne County made 22 of 51 field goal attempts for 43 percent and

tallied on 7 of 28 3-pointers for 25 percent. The squad shot an eye-popping

26 of 32 from the charity-stripe for 81 percent and totaled 11 assists, with

6 steals, against 11 turnovers.

"We didn't shoot the ball very well from three, but still had one of our

better offensive performances of the year. Our effort at the free throw line

was big. I promise we'll take 26 of 32 every time out," said Pyles.

The win marked the Lady Cards' third straight road victory, as the squad

was coming off weekend wins over East and West Jessamine. Up next was a

Friday night home date and regular season finale with #4 ranked Lexington

Catholic.

"Catholic is once again loaded and one of the best teams in the state,

so it will be good to be home, but we'll have a big challenge," said Pyles.

Details on the game in a related story inside this Outlook.

        

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