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South Laurel tops the Lady Cardinals 53-46 Shannon Hutchinson Sports Writer The Wayne County Lady Cardinals hosted South Laurel last Monday night at Cardinal Gym, in a match-up of two of the favorites in the 12th Region. Wayne County entered the contest with a 16-4 mark, while South, ranked among the stateıs top 20 teams in various polls, owned a 14-6 record. The teams met in last yearıs 12th Region Tournament championship game with Wayne County claiming a 52-47 win. South Laurel used a 31-18 second half run to erase a 28-22 halftime deficit, en route to claiming a 53-46 road win. Amber Neace scored a team high 16 points with 6 rebounds, while Taran Johnson added 13 points with 6 boards, as South improved to 15-6 on the season. South Laurel shot 47 percent from the field and made 11 of 14 free throws, including a perfect 6 of 6 down the stretch, to seal the win. ³I think the overall game itself showed we can compete with the best in our region and win, if we correct some areas. We did some good things, especially in the first half, but the biggest disappointment was our effort from the free throw line. Thatıs an area weıve been aware of all season and the snake in the grass finally bit us hard,² said Lady Cards head coach Tim Pyles. Wayne County, which dropped to 16-5, placed two scorers in double-digits, led by the 16 points of senior forward Ashley Bell. Bell finished 7 of 11 from the field and grabbed a game high 10 rebounds. Heather Stearns tallied 10 points with 3 rebounds, as the Lady Cards shot 39 percent from the field, but a dismal 35 percent from the charity-stripe. ³We could go on and on about what happened in the game, but the fact is we missed 11 of 17 free throws and weıre accountable for that. I also thought South Laurelıs ability to score on the interior with relative ease down the stretch was big,² said Pyles. Meg Latham finished with 7 points and 8 boards, while Kara Gothrup contributed 6 points with a team best 5 assists. Lindsey Dishman netted 5 points and Latoyia Green chipped-in with 2 points, as six different Lady Cards scored in the contest. Wayne County opened 6 of 10 from the field and used the 7 points of Heather Stearns to race to a 17-10 advantage. South placed three different players in the scoring column in the opening eight minutes and connected on 4 of 10 field goal attempts. The teams played on near-even terms in the second stanza and South Laurel used a 12-11 period edge, to close the halftime gap to 28-27. Ashley Bell paced the hosts with 7 points in the quarter, as Wayne County shot just 4 of 15 from the field in the frame. Taran Johnson ignited a 21-12 South run with 9 points in the third quarter, as the visitors rallied to take a 43-40 lead. South Laurel shot 55 percent from the field in the second half and connected on 9 of 15 field goal attempts in the frame. Bell once again paced Wayne County with 7 points, as the hosts converted on 5 of 12 attempts from the field. ³I thought we lost our composure, which was a direct reflection of the head coach. I let some questionable calls get the best of me and we kind of lost our focus,² said Pyles. South Laurel made just two field goals in the final quarter, but made 6 of 6 free throws to claim the 53-46 win. Wayne County was outscored 10-6 in the fourth quarter and was plagued by 5 turnovers in the closing minutes of the contest. ³We committed 5 turnovers in the final six minutes of the game and thatıs certainly the time of the game we need to secure the basketball. Our execution was just not there,² said Pyles. South Laurel finished 20 of 43 overall from the field for 47 percent and made 2 of 6 3-pointers for 33 percent. The winners converted on 11 of 14 free throws for 79 percent and totaled 12 assists against 18 turnovers. Wayne County, which claimed a 27-22 rebound edge, shot 18 of 46 overall for 39 percent and tallied on 4 of 15 3-pointers for 27 percent. The squad made a dismal 6 of 17 free throws for 35 percent and totaled 8 assists with 19 turnovers. ³Hopefully this game will make us hungrier in the future and understand the importance of several key fundamental areas. We did have the rest of the week off to get back into the gym and practice. Plus, with Southwestern the only game on our schedule this week, after our game on Tuesday we can go back to work. This time of year is a great time to refine some things and polish some of our fundamentals,² said Pyles. The Lady Cards host Southwestern on Tuesday night in a girls/boys doubleheader. Add a comment |
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