Lady Pioneers fall short in home finale
After holding their own for two quarters, the Lady Pioneers’ chances of ending their regular season with a victory began slipping away in the second half Thursday night.
White County heated up from the field, while baskets became hard to come by for the home-standing Warren County squad in an eventual 48-25 Senior Night loss.
The Lady Pioneers managed just 15 points in the second half, while the Warriorettes — who finished as the No. 3 seed in District 7-AAA — posted 16 points in each of the final two periods.
With the loss, the Lady Pioneers closed out their regular season with a 12-16 overall record and a 1-11 mark in District 7-AAA play.
“When you can’t score, you just get frustrated and it affects the rest of your game,” WCHS coach Ann Eades said of her team’s performance. “That’s what happened tonight in the second half, when so many shots went in and out.”
In a game that marked the final home appearance of seniors Katie Simpson, Jasmine Ware and Linsey Cornelius, the Lady Pioneers trailed just 7-6 at the end of the first quarter, then put together a quick four-point run early in the second to take a lead.
That lead would be short-lived, however, as the Lady Pioneers suffered through a scoring drought that lasted over eight minutes while their guests from Sparta posted 13 points to take a 20-10 edge.
White County continued to pad its lead as the third quarter wore on, going up 32-16 by the period’s end, and posted 16 more points, including eight free throws, in the fourth to keep the Lady Pioneers at bay.
Amanda Lewis led the way for White County with 13 points, while Brittany Farley, Brooke Sunday and Hannah Hacker had six each.
Ware scored 10 points to lead Warren County before fouling out late in the fourth quarter. Cornelius scored seven, Whitney Pelham and McKenna Rhea scored three each, and Amanda Locke added two.
Cornelius, who earlier on Thursday signed a soccer scholarship to Kennesaw State, said the 2002-03 season has been tough for the Lady Pioneers, but has also been a growing experience.
“We’ve had to work through some hard stuff this year,” she said, “but we’ve pulled together, we’ve kept playing hard and it’s going to make this team that much better next year.”