Lady Cougars cruise to victory

The Lady Cougars capped off an abbreviated week of action Friday, routing the visiting Cross County Lady Thunderbirds, 65-18, in their only contest.

Rector got off to a quick start, using the full-court press to create havoc for their guests and cause a plethora of turnovers. This, in turn, resulted in several easy Lady Cougar baskets in transition. If Rector couldn't get the easy basket, then they went to the line. The hosts attempted 12 free throws in the opening frame, making nine from the stripe. By the time the quarter mercifully came to an end for the visitors, the Lady Cougars held a dominating 22-2 advantage.

The hits kept coming in the second quarter, as the Lady Cougars' second unit maintained the high level of play. Emily Cornelison notched six points in the frame, while Amanda Bradford added five, as Rector moved out to a 38-11 halftime advantage.

In the third quarter, the Rector starters came back in to seal the deal. Rhoda Classen, Chelsea Drope and Allison Duncan all attacked the basket in the frame, as the starters built up the lead in the first half of the third. When the period reached its middle, with the clock constantly running, the starters went back to the bench for the remainder of the contest. There was no drop-off, though, as Kelsey Wynn led the second unit with back-to-back layups to end the third, giving Rector a 56-15 advantage.

The Lady Cougars overpowered their opponent early and never looked back, coasting in for the win. Despite the lop-sided score, it was evident Rector could have dealt even more damage on the scoreboard.

"We went into that game feeling like we were going to win and win big," Lady Cougar coach Mark Manchester said. "They're trying to build a program there, and they're starting from scratch. We didn't want to change up our game plan so much that it could hurt us later, but we also wanted to win with sportsmanship. I felt like we were able to do that."

There were a total of 11 Lady Cougars who scored on the night. Duncan and Cornelison led the way with 11 points each. Also scoring were Classen 9, Dodd 7, Wynn 7, Rebecca Dodd 5, Bradford 5, Casey Hollis 4, Jessie Scott 2, Stephanie DeMent 2 and Destinei Heathcott 2.

The junior girls were not in action, due to Cross County not fielding a squad.

The girls were slated to be in action at Marked Tree on Tuesday before heading to East Poinsett County on Friday. Next week's games will see both girls and boys at Turrell on Tuesday before hosting Marmaduke on Thursday.