FAYETTEVILLE – Sophomore Ja’Tyra Moore-Peterson lit up the scoreboard with 30 points Wednesday night to lead East Bladen to a 49-30 non-conference girls basketball victory over Cape Fear.
“I think she has taken a headcount of who is out there and who is not there this year and realized that she has to do more,” said East Bladen Coach Patty Evers referring to Moore-Peterson being the leading returnee for a team that graduated 4 senior starters. “She has to be more patient and take good shots and make good decisions.”
Moore-Peterson drained a 3-pointer and added another basket in the first period. Freshman Patience Ward and senior Emily Scott added a basket each as the Lady Eagles opened the game with a 9-0 run. East led 9-4 at the quarter-break.
A Moore-Peterson assist resulted in a Scott lay-up to start the second period. Moore-Peterson drove the baseline for a lay-up and a 3-point play, then drove it again for another lay-up.
Moore-Peterson popped in a 12-footer and hit a free throw for a 19-5 East lead. Ward sank 2 free throws, and junior Shardajah Brown turned a steal into a lay-up. Moore-Peterson nailed a 3-pointer for a 26-7 Lady Eagle lead.
Another driving lay-up by Moore-Peterson produced another 3-point play and a 29-11 East Bladen halftime lead. Moore-Peterson tallied 19 first-half points.
Senior Yolanda Coston turned an assist from Moore-Peterson into a lay-up, and Brown drilled a corner jumper to begin the second half. Moore-Peterson cashed in 3 of 4 free throws to pad the lead to 36-13.
Scott flipped in a short one-hander, and Moore-Peterson nailed a 3-point shot to keep the lead at 41-18 at the quarter break.
A Moore-Peterson assist led to a Scott lay-up to start the final quarter. Moore-Peterson tossed in a 6-footer and hit 3 of 4 free throws as the lead grew to 48-19 with 3:52 left.
Scott finished with 8 points and 6 rebounds. Ward pulled down a team-high 11 rebounds and scored 5 points. Brown grabbed 7 rebounds and tallied 4 points. Sophmore Ashley Hardin corralled 6 rebounds. Moore-Peterson had 3 assists.
The Eagles improved to 7-1 with the victory and will host Four County rival Clinton Friday night.
EB (49) – Kaley Smith, Justyna Gargala, Shardajah Brown 4, Emily Scott 8, Anna Kate White, Patience Ward 5, Ashley Hardin, Ja’Tyra Moore-Peterson 30, Yolanda Coston 2, Lorna Mendell.
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