The Barbourville Lady Tigers got the season started right Tuesday, tallying a season-opening victory in a barn burner against the McCreary Central Lady Raiders. Newly minted head coach Amy Shields tallied her first win as the team’s head coach in her very first game coached.
From early on, you could get the feel that this game was going to go down-to-the-wire. The Lady Raiders took the opening advantage, outsourcing the Lady Tigers 10-7 in the opening frame. Kennedy Creekmore erupted for eight points for McCreary Central, with teammate Corinne Trammell adding a bucket. A triad of Barbourville players found their way into the scoring column early. Sarah Smith tallied three points in the opening frame to lead the team, with teammates Lauren Smith and Layla Brock adding one bucket each to aid the effort.
The Lady Tigers took control in the second quarter behind a 16-point effort in the period. Brock was on the receiving end of a few good passes, and made the block her own, scoring six points in the second. S. Smith added four more to help the Lady Tigers regain control. L. Smith continued to provide quality minutes from the utility position, adding three points. Emilee Sizemore found her way into the scorer’s books in the second period by adding a bucket.
The Lady Raiders played a decent offensive quarter of basketball, tallying 12 points in the period, but it wasn’t enough to stave off the Lady Tiger barrage as Barbourville outscored McCreary Central 16-12 in the second period to take a very slim 23-22 lead into the locker room at the half.
As play resumed in the third quarter, McCreary Central put on an offensive clinic from long range, connecting on four shots from deep. Megan Loudermilk caught fire from outside, sinking three shots from beyond the arc. Teammate Kaylee Chitwood added one of her own. The Lady Raiders played their best period of the game in the third, outsourcing the Lady Tigers 22-13 to take a 44-36 lead into the final frame.
Back a Tiger into a corner, and it’s going to lash out and attack you. That’s just what the Lady Tigers did Monday. Down eight, Barbourville needed a substantial push on both ends of the court to make a comeback, and that’s just what it got from S. Smith. She tallied 10 points in the final frame to lead the Lady Tigers’ comeback effort, while as a team, Barbourville limited the Lady Raiders to 15 points.
The game came down to the final seconds. McCreary Central led 59-58. Barbourville drove the floor in the closing seconds looking to win the game. Following a missed shot, Danni Jordan put back the second chance bucket as time expired, sealing the 60-59 victory for the Lady Tigers.
Barbourville was led in scoring by Sarah Smith with 23 points. She was followed by Lauren Smith and Layla Brock with 12 points each, Danni Jordan with seven points, including the game-winning put back shot, Cheyenne Sizemore with four points, and Emilee Sizemore with two points.
The win was Barbourville’s season opener, its first win of the season, and the first win for first year head coach Amy Shields. The Lady Tigers will get their first dose of road action this season as they travel to Harlan County December 5.
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