Sword leads with 22 points in Lady Lion loss to North Adams
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
LEESBURG — In a season of transition for the Fairfield Lady Lions, they took a positive step forward Thursday, despite falling to the North Adams Lady Green Devils, 44-28 in Southern Hills League play at Grandle Gymnasium.
FHS is playing without the leadership of a former All-Ohio selection in senior Chelsey Riddle, who was injured during a scrimmage in the preseason.
"We took a positive step forward tonight," FHS head coach Matt Hodson said. "We played decent at East Clinton, and were outmatched at Washington C.H. The girls are learning to play without Chelsey on the floor.
"I told them it could take five, six or even seven games before we get into a rhythm."
Though the Lady Lions dropped their third straight game of the early season, it was a breakout game for senior Megan Sword.
Sword, a three-year varsity player, scored a game-high 22 points, while adding eight rebounds (four offensive), four steals and two blocks. For the game, the senior guard connected three times from beyond the arc.
After two quarters, Sword scored 14 of the Lady Lions' 18 first-half points.
"Megan (Sword) had an outstanding game. She our go-to girl on the court now, and she has three years of varsity experience. She's stepped up her game," Hodson said.
The best quarter for FHS was the first quarter, leading the eight-minute frame until 1:01 remained in the quarter.
It was Sword who scored first, with an old-fashioned three-point play, in the opening seconds of the Lady Lions' home opener.
FHS (0-1, 0-3) led 7-2 with baskets by Sword and Kortney Paris with 5:59 left in the first. Sword put FHS up 10-5 later in the same quarter with a putback bucket, along with a free throw on the ensuing FHS possession.
But turnovers caught up with the Lady Lions, who committed a total of 33, when the Lady Green Devils (1-0, 3-0) scored eight straight points for a 13-10 advantage.
FHS ended the opening quarter with a basket from Heather Cox, cutting the NA lead to 13-12.
"We talked about how we couldn't lie down this season," Hodson said. "No matter what the score is, the girls will continue to play to the best of their abilities.
"We need the quick start to a quarter like we had in the first one tonight. It really helped us gain some confidence."
In the second quarter, NA outscored the Lady Lions 19-6, opening the quarter on a 11-0 run. Sword scored all six FHS points in the second, including a 3-pointer with 3:18 remaining in the first half.
In the first half, Sword was 5-of-9 from the free-throw line.
The third quarter was slow for each team, with NA outscoring FHS, 6-2. Scoring for the Lady Lions was Tiffany Woods and Lindsey Bernard, each making a free-throw.
Sword dominated the final eight minutes, scoring all eight FHS points, including two 3-pointers.
FHS tallied 21 total rebounds, with Cox grabbing six boards and Woods with four. Paris had three assists, and Heather Huff, who was injured in the second quarter, gained one assist and two rebounds.
NA was led by Emily Fite with 13 points, followed by Destini Copas with 10. Alisan Sparks and Corey Pertuset each scored eight. Ashley DeBord had five.
Hodson talked about improvements that will be made as the season continues.
"We have to take care of the ball more and get better rebounding. We have girls playing out of position, but we need to limit the second-chance opportunities of our opponents," he said.
FHS will travel to Adena Saturday to take on the Lady Warriors of the Scioto Valley Conference.[[In-content Ad]]
FHS is playing without the leadership of a former All-Ohio selection in senior Chelsey Riddle, who was injured during a scrimmage in the preseason.
"We took a positive step forward tonight," FHS head coach Matt Hodson said. "We played decent at East Clinton, and were outmatched at Washington C.H. The girls are learning to play without Chelsey on the floor.
"I told them it could take five, six or even seven games before we get into a rhythm."
Though the Lady Lions dropped their third straight game of the early season, it was a breakout game for senior Megan Sword.
Sword, a three-year varsity player, scored a game-high 22 points, while adding eight rebounds (four offensive), four steals and two blocks. For the game, the senior guard connected three times from beyond the arc.
After two quarters, Sword scored 14 of the Lady Lions' 18 first-half points.
"Megan (Sword) had an outstanding game. She our go-to girl on the court now, and she has three years of varsity experience. She's stepped up her game," Hodson said.
The best quarter for FHS was the first quarter, leading the eight-minute frame until 1:01 remained in the quarter.
It was Sword who scored first, with an old-fashioned three-point play, in the opening seconds of the Lady Lions' home opener.
FHS (0-1, 0-3) led 7-2 with baskets by Sword and Kortney Paris with 5:59 left in the first. Sword put FHS up 10-5 later in the same quarter with a putback bucket, along with a free throw on the ensuing FHS possession.
But turnovers caught up with the Lady Lions, who committed a total of 33, when the Lady Green Devils (1-0, 3-0) scored eight straight points for a 13-10 advantage.
FHS ended the opening quarter with a basket from Heather Cox, cutting the NA lead to 13-12.
"We talked about how we couldn't lie down this season," Hodson said. "No matter what the score is, the girls will continue to play to the best of their abilities.
"We need the quick start to a quarter like we had in the first one tonight. It really helped us gain some confidence."
In the second quarter, NA outscored the Lady Lions 19-6, opening the quarter on a 11-0 run. Sword scored all six FHS points in the second, including a 3-pointer with 3:18 remaining in the first half.
In the first half, Sword was 5-of-9 from the free-throw line.
The third quarter was slow for each team, with NA outscoring FHS, 6-2. Scoring for the Lady Lions was Tiffany Woods and Lindsey Bernard, each making a free-throw.
Sword dominated the final eight minutes, scoring all eight FHS points, including two 3-pointers.
FHS tallied 21 total rebounds, with Cox grabbing six boards and Woods with four. Paris had three assists, and Heather Huff, who was injured in the second quarter, gained one assist and two rebounds.
NA was led by Emily Fite with 13 points, followed by Destini Copas with 10. Alisan Sparks and Corey Pertuset each scored eight. Ashley DeBord had five.
Hodson talked about improvements that will be made as the season continues.
"We have to take care of the ball more and get better rebounding. We have girls playing out of position, but we need to limit the second-chance opportunities of our opponents," he said.
FHS will travel to Adena Saturday to take on the Lady Warriors of the Scioto Valley Conference.[[In-content Ad]]