Lady Lions lose to Manchester
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
LEESBURG — For three quarters, the Fairfield Lady Lions were able to keep up with the fast-break transition game of the Manchester Lady Greyhounds on Monday evening.
But the final eight minutes were just a little too much for the home team, as the Lady Lions lost a Southern Hills Athletic Conference game to the Lady Greyhounds, 75-60.
The Lady Lions (0-5, 3-8) played tough and played the type of game head coach Chad Hamilton has been looking for all season. Leading the path of the improved transition game of the Lady Lions were senior Kaitlin Evans and freshman Grace Shope.
Both Evans and Shope led FHS with 21 points each. Evans finished with nine two-point baskets and three converted free throws for blackjack, while Shope scored her 21 points with three 3-pointers, four two-point field goals and four free throws.
As for the Lady Lions, they trailed 18-14 after the opening eight minutes with the score being tied at 2-2 and 4-4 early on after points by Lydia Sowders and Blake Adams with 6:16 left in the opening frame.
From that point on, the Lady Greyhounds never relinquished the lead, due in large part to a 26-point effort by Tess Burns. Burns was all over the court for the Lady Greyhounds, as she made 11 field goals and was 4-of-5 from the free-throw line.
"When you face a team like Manchester, it is difficult to get in a back-and-forth with them," FHS head coach Chad Hamilton said. "It is tough to win a game like that, especially if you give them two or three rebounds every time they shoot the ball."
Also in double figures for the Manchester was Bethany Sweeney with 19 points (including two 3-pointers) and Morgan Johnson with 14 points.
After the first frame with the Lady Lions trailing by four points, they still trailed by four points at halftime, this time by a 38-34 score.
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At one point in the second, FHS trailed 34-23, but battled back with a 3-pointer from Evans with 3:31 on the clock, and fewer than 30 seconds later, Sowders made a put-back basket in the paint for an 34-28 deficit.
As the game continued to be about transition speed, it was FHS who finished the quarter strong with the final six points, including four points from Shope and two free throws by Olivia Bobb.
What ultimately became a big difference in the game was MHS outscoring the Lady Lions, 14-8 and in the fourth, the scoring differential was five points at 23-18.
Also in the scoring column for FHS was Justice Hattan with seven points, and Sowders finished with four points. Scoring two points each were Carly Arnold, Olivia Bobb and Blake Adams. Haley Bobb scored one point.
"The game plan all year has been for us to score in transition," Hamilton said. "It really has been a matter of us just doing it. Our past five or six games have been against very tough opponents, and stops on the defensive end were rare, which makes it tougher to get out in transition.
"We can be more effective when we do that, but it is just a matter of getting a defensive stop and to give ourselves that chance."
In JV play, the Lady Lions defeated Manchester, 43-8. Chloe Barber led FHS with 10 points, followed by Carli Reiber with nine and Olivia Bobb with eight points.
But the final eight minutes were just a little too much for the home team, as the Lady Lions lost a Southern Hills Athletic Conference game to the Lady Greyhounds, 75-60.
The Lady Lions (0-5, 3-8) played tough and played the type of game head coach Chad Hamilton has been looking for all season. Leading the path of the improved transition game of the Lady Lions were senior Kaitlin Evans and freshman Grace Shope.
Both Evans and Shope led FHS with 21 points each. Evans finished with nine two-point baskets and three converted free throws for blackjack, while Shope scored her 21 points with three 3-pointers, four two-point field goals and four free throws.
As for the Lady Lions, they trailed 18-14 after the opening eight minutes with the score being tied at 2-2 and 4-4 early on after points by Lydia Sowders and Blake Adams with 6:16 left in the opening frame.
From that point on, the Lady Greyhounds never relinquished the lead, due in large part to a 26-point effort by Tess Burns. Burns was all over the court for the Lady Greyhounds, as she made 11 field goals and was 4-of-5 from the free-throw line.
"When you face a team like Manchester, it is difficult to get in a back-and-forth with them," FHS head coach Chad Hamilton said. "It is tough to win a game like that, especially if you give them two or three rebounds every time they shoot the ball."
Also in double figures for the Manchester was Bethany Sweeney with 19 points (including two 3-pointers) and Morgan Johnson with 14 points.
After the first frame with the Lady Lions trailing by four points, they still trailed by four points at halftime, this time by a 38-34 score.
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At one point in the second, FHS trailed 34-23, but battled back with a 3-pointer from Evans with 3:31 on the clock, and fewer than 30 seconds later, Sowders made a put-back basket in the paint for an 34-28 deficit.
As the game continued to be about transition speed, it was FHS who finished the quarter strong with the final six points, including four points from Shope and two free throws by Olivia Bobb.
What ultimately became a big difference in the game was MHS outscoring the Lady Lions, 14-8 and in the fourth, the scoring differential was five points at 23-18.
Also in the scoring column for FHS was Justice Hattan with seven points, and Sowders finished with four points. Scoring two points each were Carly Arnold, Olivia Bobb and Blake Adams. Haley Bobb scored one point.
"The game plan all year has been for us to score in transition," Hamilton said. "It really has been a matter of us just doing it. Our past five or six games have been against very tough opponents, and stops on the defensive end were rare, which makes it tougher to get out in transition.
"We can be more effective when we do that, but it is just a matter of getting a defensive stop and to give ourselves that chance."
In JV play, the Lady Lions defeated Manchester, 43-8. Chloe Barber led FHS with 10 points, followed by Carli Reiber with nine and Olivia Bobb with eight points.