January 31, 2008

Lady Tigers hold Neosho to two first half points in lopsided win

It has been a rough year for the Neosho County women’s basketball team. However, Wednesday night’s game at Cowley College’s W.S. Scott Auditorium was probably the low point of the season as the Lady Tigers held Neosho to two first half points en route to a 61-25 win.

The Lady Panthers, losers of 10 games in a row, made just 1-of-18 shots in the first half, while committing 16 turnovers. Cowley built a 30-2 halftime lead and used the second half as an opportunity to get its reserves some court time.

All 11 Lady Tigers that saw playing time scored in the win. Neasha Haynes led the balanced attack with 10 points.

“I thought a lot of people came out and contributed for us, which was good,” Cowley head coach Todd Clark said.

Cowley out-shot Neosho County 45.3 percent to 16.7 percent from the floor. The Lady Panthers’ Fila Smith, who entered the contest averaging 13.4 points per game, made just 2-of-18 shots and finished with six points.

The victory improves Cowley’s record to 12-9 overall and 7-2 in the Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division. With Coffeyville’s 71-57 win over Labette on Wednesday, Cowley is now just one game behind both teams for first place in the conference.

The loss drops Neosho County’s record to 2-19 overall and 0-9 in the Jayhawk East.
Cowley will play at Kansas City Saturday at 2 p.m. The Lady Blue Devils are 12-9 overall and 4-5 in the Jayhawk East.

“I can’t remember us playing real well there in quite a while,” Clark said. “They are quite a bit better than they have been in the past, so we will need to concentrate and play well.”

The game can be heard on KACY 102.5 FM Arkansas City.

Box score:
Neosho (25): Carshena Anderson 2-10 1-1 5, Kelcy Shackelford 3-6 0-0 8, Fila Smith 2-18 1-2 6, Brandi Robertson 1-3 0-0 2, Kori Davis 0-3 0-0 0, Andrea Holloway 0-8 0-0 0, Quinetta Hadley 1-6 2-4 4. Totals: 9-54 4-7 25.

Cowley (61): Elena Yankova 4-9 0-0 8, JaNeil Robinson 3-5 0-0 6, Alexis Wright 1-2 0-1 2, Whitney Williams 4-8 1-1 9, Lauren Cherry 2-4 0-0 4, Noelle Jackson 2-3 0-0 4, Courtney Goodrum 3-5 2-2 8, Amy Slane 1-6 0-0 2, Natasa Draganic 0-1 2-4 2, Caitlin Spencer 1-3 4-6 6, Neasha Haynes 3-7 4-5 10. Totals: 24-53 13-19 61.

Three-pointers: Neosho 3-14 (Anderson 0-3, Shackelford 2-3, Smith 1-6, Holloway 0-2), Cowley 0-8 (Yankova 0-2, Robinson 0-1, Cherry 0-1, Jackson 0-1, Slane 0-2, Haynes 0-1). Rebounds: Neosho 27 (Smith, Hadley 8), Cowley 34 (Robinson 5). Assists: Neosho 3 (Anderson, Smith, Holloway 1), Cowley 11 (Yankova, Cherry 3). Turnovers: Neosho 28, Cowley 20. Total fouls: Neosho 17, Cowley 11. Fouled out: none. Technicals: Holloway.