CERRO GORDO – A 15-3 third-quarter West Columbus run carried the Lady Vikings to a 40-35 Three Rivers Conference girls basketball victory over West Bladen Tuesday night.
Senior Tah’nijay McKoy tossed in 5 points, and Tiyama Braddy and Willow Stackhouse dropped in 4 points each to key the Lady Viking rally.
Freshman Haley George, senior Carley Dawson and junior Lexie Corrothers sank a free throw each to keep West Bladen within 27-23 at the quarter break.
Junior Kasee Singletary raced end-to-end for a lay-up then banked in a 3-pointer to begin the final period. George nailed a 3-pointer to pull the Lady Knights to within 32-31 with 4:41 remaining.
Braddy answered with a 3-point basket, and Haley Brown put in a follow shot to pad the lead to 37-31 with 2:55 left. Corrothers flipped in a lay-up to close the gap to 37-33 at the 2:28 mark.
A McKoy lay-up with 34 seconds remaining sealed the verdict. A Singletary pass produced a Corrothers lay-up with 8 seconds on the clock.
McKoy led West Columbus with 12 points, and Braddy followed with 11 points.
Singletary fired in 13 points to lead all scorers for West Bladen. Corrothers finished with 7 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals. George totaled 6 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals. Dawson followed with 5 points and a team-high 14 rebounds. Junior Mikayla Meadows tallied 4 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals.
After McKoy’s 3-point bomb opened the scoring, Singletary swished 2 free throws, and a Corrothers assist led to a Dawson lay-up. Meadows put back a rebound for a 6-3 Lady Knight lead. A Braddy lay-up edged West Columbus ahead 7-6 at the quarter break.
A Jessica Labra steal and assist resulted in a Singletary lay-up that ignited a 12-0 West Bladen run. George stole the ball and sprinted for a lay-up, and Singletary drove for another lay-up.
Corrothers popped in a runner off of a Singletary assist, and a Seniah Johnson assist led to a Dawson lay-up. Meadows cashed in 2 free throws to grow the lead to 18-9.
A pair of Singletary free throws widened the gap to 20-9, before Brown’s 3-pointer trimmed the margin to 20-12 at halftime.
“We left too many points on the floor in the first half,” said Lady Knight Coach Brian McCleney. “We missed 7 lay-ups and a bunch of free throws. We could have extended the lead and that would have helped us survive the third quarter. The third quarter was the turning point. We just couldn’t get the ball in the basket.”
The Lady Knights, now 9-5 in the TRC and 12-7 overall, will host South Robeson Thursday night.
West Bladen 6 14 3 12 – 35
West Columbus 7 5 15 13 – 40
WEST BLADEN (35) – Haley George 6, Tatiana Hunt, Kasee Singletary 13, Lexie Corrothers 7, Carley Dawson 5, Seniah Johnson, Mikayla Meadows 4, Hannah Pait, Jessica Labra.
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