Lady Wolves Stave Off Late Surge by Stars for Third Straight Win

EL DORADO, Ark. – The Co-Lin Lady Wolves returned to action with a road trip against South Arkansas on Thursday, November 9. The Lady Wolves had to hold off a late surge in the fourth quarter by the Lady Stars to earn a hard fought, 61-57 win.

"I am proud of the good road win last night from our team," stated Co-Lin head coach Dr. Britta Stephens. "It is always tough to get a win when you have a long bus ride and you're playing the same opponent that you played only two days prior."

The Lady Wolves had another strong opening first quarter against the Lady Stars outscoring them, 16-12, to hold a lead at that margin at the end of play. The Lady Wolves carried that momentum into the second quarter adding 19 points to their lead while holding the Lady Stars to 16 points. The Lady Wolves held a 35-28 lead as the buzzer sounded for halftime.

The Lady Wolves held the momentum through the third quarter while holding the Lady Stars below double-digit scoring. After adding 13 points to their lead and holding the Lady Stars to just nine points, the Lady Wolves held a 48-37 lead heading into the final quarter. The fourth quarter saw the Lady Stars have an offensive explosion as they put 20 points on the board and held the Lady Wolves to just 13; however, the Lady Wolves did not relinquish the lead as they secured the 61-57 victory.

"Tonight, we played the best defense that we have played all season," said Stephens. "Kayla Howard had a huge impact on defense and held their best player to just one three pointer all night. Sequoia Bouldin was another impact player on defense. She came off the bench for us to guard their best player and did an outstanding job."

Ceara Myers (Baton Rouge) led the way for the Lady Wolves with her second straight double-double performance of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds paired with two steals, one assist, and one block. A'Shante Fleming (Canton) added 13 points with two assists, one steal, and one rebound while Lashaunte Payne (Magee) had 11 points with five rebounds, two steals, and one assist.

Myla Harbor (Farriday, LA) narrowly missed a double-double performance with nine points and 11 rebounds along with three assists and one steal. Kayla Howard (Shaw) had six points, Sequoia Bouldin (Hattiesburg) had five points, and Kiersten Haynes (Clinton) had three points to round out the scoring for the Lady Wolves. Haynes led the team in assist and steals with seven and five respectively and added five rebounds to her night.

"Offensively, we struggled a little more than we have in the three previous games," added Stephens. "Lashaunte Payne scored the first basket of the night for us for the second game in a row and continued to be a leader throughout the game. Ceara Myers was outstanding once again with her second straight double-double and although Myla Harbor did not have a great shooting night, her 11 rebounds were huge for us."

Co-Lin improves to 3-1 on the season and will return to action to face off against LSU-Eunice in the Southwest Coca Cola Classic on Monday, November 13. Tip-off between the Lady Bengals and the Lady Wolves is set for 1 p.m., at Southwest Mississippi Community College in Summit.