Bronaugh, Sheldon split Golden Valley doubleheader

Friday, December 16, 2016
Bronaugh Lady Wildcats senior forward Katey Rider elevates for a short jumper, Dec. 6 against the Ballard Bulldogs. Also pictured for Bronaugh, are Taylor Stratford (22) and Becca Raper (10). (Submitted photo)

In a Tuesday night Golden Valley Vernon County Conference doubleheader, the Sheldon Panthers defeated the Bronaugh Wildcats 55-41, while the Lady Wildcats bested the Lady Panthers 49-20.

The victory improves the Panthers to 5-2 overall and 3-1 GVVC-play, while Wildcat fall to 2-5 overall and 1-1 in GVVC-play. Meanwhile, the Lady Cats' up their record to 6-1 overall (2-0 GVVC), while the Lady Panthers are now 0-7 overall (0-4 GVVC).

In the girls game, Bronaugh forward Katey Rider finished with a game-high 12 points on 5-of-13 shooting while also pulling down a dozen rebounds; followed by Taylor Stratford with 8 points and five steals; Becca Raper, 8; Mandy Murphy, 6; Riley Knapp, 6 and five steals; Bonnie Moore, 4; Paige Wait, 3; and Mattie Earnest, 2.

Sheldon was paced by freshman guard Meckinize McCartney, who tallied a team-high 9 points; followed by Mahalia Swink with 4 points; Alycia Baney, 4; Nici Hites, 2; and Leah Bogart, 1.

In the boys contest, Sheldon point guard Zavery Lamb exploded for a game-high 19 points; followed by Brett O'Connor with 15 to go along with six rebounds; Clayton Loyd, 8; Kaleb Martin, 7; Alex Hibbitts, 4; and Matt Bogart, 2.

For Bronaugh, forward Tyler Strunk led the way with a team-high 15 points; followed by Carsen Gray with 11; Joe Mader, 6; and Austin Gray, 5.

Sheldon head coach Dusty Murray said he was impressed with the Panthers performance, as they picked up their third consecutive victory.

"The boys played a hard-nosed grind it out type of game tonight," he said. "They went against an opponent that was ready to give us a fight and the boys responded by adjusting on defense to put us in the best position to win."

Murray continued, "We moved the ball around and got good looks on the offensive side of the ball. We attacked when the chances were there, and we made key stops on defense and showed the kind of grit that makes these boys a team any coach would be proud of."

Murray discussed his individual players.

"Zavery did a good job setting the tone on the type of game we played," he said. "Brett played an all-around going against Strunk inside. Clayton was active on the defensive side of the ball and did a good job following his shots and getting offensive rebounds."

Murray continued, "Alex played with a lot of hustle and was active on the defensive side of the ball with three steals. And Matt Bogart was one of the anchors on the defensive side when he was in, as he got his hands in passing lanes and did a good job with defensive rebounds."

Murray, who also coaches the Lady Panthers, said he was pleased with the improvement his squad is showing.

"The girls went up against a team that pressured us the entire game," he said. "Overall, we handled the pressure well enough to put points on the board."

Murray added, "On the offensive side, we had opportunities and the ball just didn't find it's way in the net. When we kept the ball moving and we dictated where we wanted their defense shifting, we were able to find easy looks."

The Lady Panthers trailed 9-0 after the first quarter and 27-10 at halftime.

"On the defensive side of the ball we put ourselves in the right positions and got to the places we wanted to be, but just couldn't get inside to finish the box out and rebounds," He said. "We gave up second chance points, and these are things that we will get cleaned up and be ready to bounce back against Miami after the break."

Key stats include, the Lady Cats' coming up with 21 steals compared to Sheldon's two; while the Bronaugh outrebounded the Lady Panthers 33-21. For the game, the Lady Wildcats shot 40 percent from the field (22-of-55) while the Lady Panthers connected on just 15 percent (5-of-32) of their field goal attempts. Bronaugh also capitalized on second chance points with 28, compared to just four for Sheldon.

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