The Fair Grove Lady Eagles took the lead at the half and never let go, putting down the Ash Grove Lady Pirates 65-52.
Leading 33-28 going into the third, Lorin Weaver doubled the Lady Eagles’ lead to 10 points with an inside bucket and a trey, 38-28. Sydnee Cashio and Alexa Owens put up four for the Lady Pirates, and Weaver countered with another basket, leaving the Lady Eagles leading 40-32.
Owens sank a trey for the Lady Pirates, but Makenna Hill also sank one for the Lady Eagles from outside the circle, 43-35. Hill followed with another goal for the Lady Eagles, and they led by 10 once again, 45-35.
Morgan Allred and Bailey Weaver each sank 3-point baskets for their teams, and the Lady Eagles led 48-38 going into the 4th.
Harley Maxwell (6’2”) outsized and outshot the Lady Pirates inside the lane in the fourth, scoring three baskets. Bailey Weaver scored seven in the fourth, and Alana Findley scored four for the Lady Eagles.
The Lady Eagles tied the Lady Pirates through much of the first quarter, but Hannah Robinson’s last-second bucket gave the Lady Pirates the lead going into the second, 13-11.
Coach Jenny Talbert explained how the Lady Eagles adjusted to counter the Lady Pirates’ power guard trio.
“We were kind of upset with the first quarter,” said Talbert. “We didn’t think we really came ready to play in that first quarter. We started off in man and had to switch to zone early, because we were struggling with their guards. That slowed them down and helped us rebound a little better. I really thought we kind of showed what we’re good at the second, third, and fourth. I told them let’s really work hard that fourth quarter and let’s put them away.”
Owens and Keith sank back-to-back treys for the Lady Pirates in the second,19-11. The Lady Eagles went two-for-four at the line, and Alana Findley rebounded a missed shot, closing the gap to 19-15. Another point at the line and a 3-pointer from Hill tied the game 19-all with four minutes remaining in the half.
The Lady Eagles finished the first half with a 14-9 run capped off by a trey by Bailey Weaver, to lead 33-28 at the half.
Bailey Weaver led the Lady Eagles in scoring with 18 points, including four goals from outside the circle.
“We knew that they had three really great guards. We knew they were going to be aggressive, and that a lot of their points would come from them,” said Weaver. “Our goal was to shut them down. We struggled from a man at the beginning, and then we got into a zone and that really helped us out. We used our size against them for sure, because we have two girls that are six foot, so we definitely use them to our advantage.”
Alexa Owens and Mallory Keith led in scoring for the Lady Pirates, at 15 points each. Keith sank three treys.
The Lady Eagles improve to 8-3 with the win over Ash Grove (8-5).
“We are doing great this year; I’m so proud of all the girls,” said Bailey Weaver. “We work really well together. Everyone has the same common goal; it’s all about winning for us. Whatever has to be done, we finish it. We get the game done.”
1 2 3 4
Ash Grove 13 15 10 14 — 52
Fair Grove 11 22 15 17 — 65
Fair Grove: Bailey Weaver 18, Makenna Hill 16, Harley Maxwell 12, Lorin Weaver 9, Alana Findley 6, Emily Hopkins 3 – 65
Ash Grove: Mallory Keith 15, Alexa Owens 15, Morgan Allred 9, Sydnee Cashio 7, Catie Martin 3, Hannah Robinson 2, Kayla Keene 1 — 52
