NORTH LITTLE ROCK — Eight different players contributed to the scoring as the Bryant White Lady Hornets eighth grade team of Bryant Middle School earned their first win of the season, 32-26, over EStem at a tournament in North Little Rock.
The Lady Hornets rushed to a 15-3 lead by the end of the first quarter and held a 17-8 advantage at the half. EStem pulled within 23-19 going into the fourth quarter but could never gain the lead.
Daria Greer led the way with 8 points. Jordan Hancock added 7 and Emma Chappell 5. Caitlin Lacerra scored 4, Jayla Keith 3 with V’Mya Palmer and Shamya Jordan adding 2 each. Savannah Lucas hit a free throw.
“We got up early then came out in the third quarter a little over-confident,” said Lady Hornets coach Ben Perry. “Inexperience and excitement got the best of our team. In the fourth quarter, we got our lead back and I called a timeout to settle the girls down and instruct them to run the offense and wait for an open layup or let them foul you, since we were in the bonus and time was on our side. Luckily, the girls rallied and, with free throws back and forth, we were able to pull away for the victory.
Rebounding helped EStem get back into as well as they out-boarded the Lady Hornets 36-32.
“We have a lot to work on and limited time between now and when we return from Thanksgiving break,” Perry noted. “We face a very tough Lake Hamilton team at home and they have great ball handlers and great shooters. Hopefully, we play to the level of our opponent like we did on Tuesday against North Little Rock.
“I saw some great things in transition,” he added of Thursday’s contest. “We just need to clean up our passes, be careful and deliberate with the ball, and aggressive on defense. It is early in our season and we have much basketball to play.
“All in all, I’m proud of their win and I look forward to the next game,” he concluded.
