Clinton closed the first half with a 12-0 run en route to a 60-44 Four County Conference girls basketball victory at West Bladen Friday night.
Junior Laikyn Pait muscled in a high-arching follow shot, and freshman Erika McKoy drained a corner jumper for a quick 4-0 West Bladen lead.
The Lady Dark Horses answered with a 12-1 spurt as freshman Ashlyn Williams drove for a lay-up, drilled a 3-point shot and capped the run with a lay-up that resulted in a 3-point play and a 12-5 Clinton lead at the quarter break.
Junior Logan Autry banked in a 14-footer, and junior Jerena Purdie sank 2 free throws to start the second quarter and pull West to within 12-9.
Junior Akira Grimes popped in a baseline jumper, and Pait made 3 of 4 free throws to trim the Clinton lead to 15-14. Sophmore Patience Parker hit 1 of 2 foul shots to knot the score at 15.
Williams raced for a lay-up that put Clinton back on top, but junior Alanna Ludlum pumped in a 15-footer to tie the game a final time 17-17 with 3:02 left in the half.
Alania Capps buried a 3-point shot, and sophmore Alex Canady turned a West turnover into a lay-up. Senior Brielle Mitchell banked in a runner, and Williams threw in a runner and a lay-up to stretch the lead to 29-17.
Pait canned a pair of free throws to begin the second half, but Mitchell raced for a pair of lay-ups and a 35-19 lead.
Junior Kassidy Anderson tossed in a 6-footer, and Parker nailed a 3-point shot for the Lady Knights. Purdie’s rebound basket and a Pait free throw kept West within 46-27 at the quarter break.
Pait knocked in 4 of 5 free throws, and Autry hit one to begin the final period. After Clinton grew the lead to 54-32, Grimes hooked in an acrobatic bank shot then stole the ball and sprinted for a lay-up.
Anderson connected on a pair of short jump shots, Autry drove for a lay-up and McKoy sank 2 free throws to close out the West scoring.
Pait posted a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds for West Bladen. Anderson and Grimes followed with 6 points each, and Autry and Purdie added 5 points each.
The Lady Knights outrebounded Clinton 45-31. Purdie and Autry grabbed 6 rebounds each, and sophmore Elizabeth Allbright pulled down 5 rebounds.
West Bladen was plagued by 32 turnovers in the game. “Turnovers killed us,” said Lady Knight Coach Rick Rhoda. “They scored off a lot of them. I was proud of my girls though. They didn’t give up and kept fighting. We are getting better.”
Mitchell led the Clinton scoring with 16 points, and Williams followed with 14 points. Canady finished with 10 points.
West Bladen, now 5-7 in the league and 7-14 overall, will travel to Midway Tuesday night.
West Bladen (44) – Alanna Ludlum 2, Erika McKoy 4, Patience Parker 4, Kassidy Anderson 6, Logan Autry 5, Laikyn Pait 12, Jenna Dove, Elizabeth Allbright, Akira Grimes 6, Jerena Purdie 5, Conner Brisson.
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