Lady Pats catch fire in fourth

Lady Pats catch fire in fourth

Marion girls defeat Lady Chickasaws

sports@theeveningtimes.com

Thanks to an offensive explosion in the fourth quarter, the Lady Patriots (4-2 overall, 1-0 conference) earned their first conference victory of the season by defeating the Lady Chickasaws (0-3, 01) 64-50.

After losing a six-point lead in the third quarter, the Lady Pats offense ignited by going on a 2410 run in the final quarter of play. After the game, Lady Patriot Head Coach Shunda Johnson gave all the praise for the teams fourth quarter effort to her players.

“That was all them,” Johnson said. “I didn’t say anything. That sense of urgency was all thanks to them.”

With the game tied at 40 to start the final eight minutes of play, Angel Davie sparked the Lady Patriots with a huge three. That boost of energy is something Johnson has come to expect from Davie. “Angel [Davie] is instant offense when she comes in,” Johnson said. “She attacks the rack and she can finish. When Angel is going, she can fill it up.”

Davie finished the game with 16 points, eight of which came in the fourth quarter.

Jakyya Clay, who chipped in 21 points on the night, also contributed eight points in the fourth quarter. Six of those points came on two three-point plays in which Clay drew contact while converting on a layup before sinking a free throw.

“Once she settled down and played fundamentally sound, she put the ball in the basket and grabbed some huge offensive rebounds for us,” Johnson said. “She made her mind up during the last four minutes of the fourth that she was going to go out there and play.”

Three other Lady Patriots pitched into the team’s 24 point fourth quarter including Tashlee Milow, Mikiya McAdory and Tyquesha Selvy. Selvy tied with Tramauryia Marie Hunter for third in scoring with both players contributing six points to the Lady Pats victory.

The Lady Pats huge night on offense allowed the team to walk out of their home gym of Patriot Arena with a win in their first conference game of the season. That win is paramount to the team’s playoff hopes, according to Johnson.

“We have to fight to get to the district tournament,” Johnson said. “We have to get these conference wins to get a higher seed in the tournament. That’s the most important thing.

That’s what I told the girls yesterday, ‘If you want to start making a run for the conference title, you have to start today.’” Johnson and her Lady Patriot team look to take their next step towards a conference championship with a win in Paragould against Green County Tech Friday night at 5 p.m.

By Collins Peeples