Lady Pioneers fall 68-33

GALLATIN ? After a relatively tight first half, the Lady Knights of Pope John Paul II took command Friday night and handed Warren County?s girls their seventh straight defeat.

Opening the second and final night of the Sumner Sports Medicine Classic, the Lady Pioneers trailed by single digits at intermission, but scored just 14 second-half points, six of which came in the closing minute of their 68-33 loss.

Twenty second-half turnovers contributed to the Lady Pioneers? lack of post-halftime production, and they were held without a field goal for the first four minutes of the third quarter before Brittany Frazier hit a 3-pointer. But by the time her shot went down, so had the Lady Pioneers? chances of ending their current losing streak, as PJPII had built upon its 28-19 halftime lead with a 16-point run to open the third.

WCHS ? which travels to Overton for its annual Christmas tournament this week ? hit just five of the 12 shots it took in Friday?s second half, and connected on 11 of 29 attempts, including a 6-of-14 mark from 3-point range, for the game. The Lady Pioneers finished with 33 turnovers, 11 of which came in the fourth quarter to further prevent a possible comeback.

Frazier ? who led her team?s efforts with 14 points ? put the Lady Pioneers on the board early, knocking down the first of her two first-quarter 3-pointers. The Lady Knights answered with a 6-0 run, but Frazier buried her second trey, tying the game at 6-6, and Elizabeth Lavoie added an inside basket before Taylor Douglas scored to tie the game at 10-all by the period?s end.

PJPII scored five unanswered points before another Frazier 3-pointer stopped the bleeding early in the second, but the Lady Knights answered that shot with another scoring surge, posting nine points while holding the Lady Pioneers to two.

WCHS went without a field goal for the final four minutes of the second quarter, but hit four of its eight free-throw attempts as the period wound down and headed to the halftime locker room trailing by just nine.

Frazier led the Lady Pioneers? scoring effort with 14 points, 11 of which came in the first half. Jessica Mullican had six thanks to a pair of late 3-pointers, while Douglas and Lavoie finished with five each and Sarah Roller added two. The Lady Knights finished with a dozen players in the scoring column, led by Addi Young?s 13-point night and Patsy Mahoney?s 12.

Tip-off for Tuesday?s first-round game at Overton, which will be against the host Lady Bobcats, is scheduled for 1 p.m.