Wilmington girls edge Laurel
Wilmington (44) Vs. Laurel (38)
Dec 29, 2009
The Wilmington High girls raced to an 11-point lead after the first quarter and were able to withstand a furious Laurel rally to claim a 44-38 verdict in the first round of the Union Booster Tournament.
“Laurel never quit and came after us in the last quarter,” Wilmington coach Brian Turk said. “All in all, our girls hung tough and we came out with a win. Hopefully, we can do the same thing (against Moniteau).”
Wilmington (4-1) jumped to a 17-6 lead after the first and carried a 28-13 advantage at halftime. The Lady ’Hounds posted a 37-21 margin after three quarters, but the Lady Spartans (2-4) made a strong charge in the final frame. They outscored Wilmington, 17-7, but could not overcome the deficit.
“We came out really well. We came out hot and put 28 points on the board in first half,” Turk said. “Good teams always make runs, so we knew Laurel was going to and they did in the fourth quarter. We had a couple girls get in foul trouble, too, and that got us out of sync a little.”
Becca Kerr, who scored a game-high 20 points, sparked the Lady Spartans’ comeback bid. She scored 14 of the team’s 17 points in the fourth quarter.
“We really dug a big hole for ourselves,” Laurel coach Jenn McGarrah said. “Becca had a really strong fourth quarter for us.”
Emily McKissick added seven points for Laurel, which meets Union in the 3 p.m. consolation game, while Nicolette McCormick had five.
Haley Marett led Wilmington with 12 points. She added five assists. Stephanie Kish and Julie Burns, who were in foul trouble in the fourth quarter, finished with 10 and eight points, respectively. Burns added 11 rebounds. Mackenzie Hiers had seven points and seven assists, while Catherine Foltz had four points and eight rebounds.
“Even with the pressure Laurel put on us, I think we only had nine turnovers. Whenever we keep it under 12, we’re happy. That was good for us,” Turk said. “We’ll take the win. It was a good win for us. We’re shooting better and better every game and we’re happy about that.”