MA sweeps Carroll

A focused group of Lady Patriots picked up a huge District 1-AA win Friday night at Carrollton.

“There’s no doubt they were determined to win that game,” coach Traci Rodgers said. “They were composed and focused from start to finish.”

The game between the two rivals was knotted at 18 at the half but the Marshall Academy girls snatched the momentum in the third quarter and went on to win 38-34.

At the 3:46 mark of the third, Kaylan Parks scored on a putback and was fouled. Her free throw pushed MA ahead 27-21.

The Lady Rebels got back to within two with 2:50 to go in the third. But the Lady Patriots went up nine at the end of the quarter. Julia Nicholson’s bucket with two seconds to go made it 34-25.

Marshall managed to stay in front in the fourth and claimed the hard-fought, four-point victory to go to 3-0 in district play.

“This is a fun group to coach,” Rodgers said. “They know what they’re capable of, and Friday night they found a way to make it happen.

“Erin (Lomenick) and KK (Parks) gave us sparks we needed on both offense and defense. Julia (Nicholson) put us on her shoulders multiple times to help us persevere offensively, and Alexis (McGreger) and Jess (Deming) controlled the tempo as our floor generals. I’m proud of all the girls for being energetic and communicating the whole game.”

Nicholson finished with a game-high 19 points, 12 of those coming in the second half. Parks added nine.

The Marshall boys had no trouble at Carrollton. They were on cruise control in a 64-27 win over the Rebels to also go to 3-0 in the district.

Wyle McMillan scored eight points in the first quarter as the Patriots took a 14-4 advantage.

Everette Jones’ steal and bucket put MA up 19-4 with 6:15 to go in the second quarter. Two minutes later his three-point play upped the lead to 24-6.

The Patriots outscored their opponent 24-4 in the second quarter to go ahead 38-8 at halftime.

They went on to win by 37 points.

Eleven Patriots scored in the game. Wyle McMillen led the way with 12, followed by E.  Jones with 11. Jeremiah Jones added nine.

MA-North Delta

Marshall teams split with Class AAA North Delta Saturday in Batesville.

The Patriots never trailed as they beat the Green Wave 56-40.

Consecutive threes by Tyler Bolden and Eli Pearson quickly put Marshall up 8-2. It was 15-9 at the end of the first.

The lead ballooned to 12 in the second quarter when E. Jones scored on an in-bounds play.

J. Jones ended the first half with a three, and MA was ahead 31-20 at the break.

Javion Smith’s bucket in the paint pushed the lead to 16 in the third.

North Delta got back to within 12 midway through the fourth, but E. Jones and Pearson cashed in shots after Green Wave turnovers to secure the 16-point win.

E. Jones was the top gun  for the Patriots with 16 points. Pearson and Bolden contributed 11 and 10, respectively.

The Marshall and North Delta girls hooked up in a thriller Saturday. The Lady Patriots made a strong push in the fourth before falling short, 56-51.

MA stunned the home crowd early. A three by McGreger, the first of her five on the night, was followed by a three from Deming to put the visiting team up 8-2.

At the end of the first, Marshall led 15-13.

The teams swapped the lead a couple of times in the second. Nicholson’s three-point play put MA on top 20-19 with 4:11 to go until the half. But North Delta went to the intermission with a 24-23 advantage.

The Lady Green Wave outscored Marshall 16-6 in the third and led 40-29 heading to the fourth.

Near the two-minute mark Parks and Deming drilled back-to-back threes to cut the deficit to 50-45.

With 29 seconds left, McGreger drove to the hoop for two and MA was within one, 52-51.

North Delta then scored the last four points of the game to escape with the five-point win.

McGreger scorched the nets with 21 points. Nicholson added 15.

The Lady Patriots (10-6) and the Patriots (13-3) hosted Magnolia Heights Monday and Central Holmes Tuesday. They host Carroll Friday night and then go to Central Holmes Saturday. Next Monday, Jan. 29, they host Winona Christian, and next Tuesday, Jan 30, they travel to Oak Hill. All but Magnolia Heights are district opponents.