Second Half Surge Propels Lady Wolves to Road Win

SENATOBIA – The Co-Lin Women's Basketball team hit the road for the second game of the week facing off against Northwest Mississippi on Thursday, January 11. The Lady Wolves scored 44 points in the second half to overcome a halftime deficit and beat the Lady Rangers, 69-63.

"This was a huge road win for our team as we get ready to head in to conference play," stated Co-Lin head coach Dr. Britta Stephens. "Moving our game at the start of the week from Monday to Tuesday due to weather gave us a shorter prep time for this game, but our team did not let that affect us."

The two teams traded baskets and leads over the opening minutes of the first quarter with the game sitting tied 6-6 with around seven minutes of play left. The Lady Wolves then went on a 7-2 scoring run to take the lead at 13-8 with three minutes left in the first quarter. The Lady Rangers responded by closing out the quarter with a 6-4 scoring run; however, the Lady Wolves held the lead at 17-14.

The second quarter belonged to the Lady Rangers as they outscored the Lady Wolves, 17-8, and held a 31-25 lead as the teams entered the locker rooms at halftime.

The Lady Wolves comeback effort started off early as they opened the third quarter with a 6-2 scoring run to cut the lead down to 33-31 with just over seven minutes of play left. However, the Lady Rangers responded with a 7-1 scoring run over the next couple of minutes to grow their lead to 40-32 with close to five and a half minutes remaining. The Lady Wolves continued to battle and claw their way back as they responded with a 12-5 scoring run to cut the lead down to one point, 45-44, with just under two minutes left in the quarter. The Lady Rangers responded with a 7-4 scoring run including scoring four points in the final 30 seconds of the quarter after the Lady Wolves tied the game as the lead stood at 52-48 in favor of the Lady Rangers.

The Lady Wolves would not be denied though as they opened the fourth quarter with a 4-0 scoring run in the first minute to tie the game at 52-52 with nine minutes left in the game. The Lady Wolves then gained the lead, 54-52, with a layup by Kayla Howard (Shaw) with seven and a half minutes left and never gave it back to the Lady Rangers. The basket sparked a 9-5 scoring run and saw the Lady Wolves hold a 61-57 lead with four minutes remaining. The Lady Wolves then closed out the quarter with an 8-6 scoring run to seal the 69-63 victory.

Angel Wilkinson (Brookhaven) provided a big spark off the bench for the Lady Wolves as she led the team in scoring with 16 points to go along with six rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Kayla Howard added 14 points with three rebounds, two assists, and one steal while Ceara Myers (Baton Rouge) had 12 points with six rebounds, two assists, and one block.

"Our defensive intensity from the tip of the game was stellar," added Stephens. "Kayla Howard was a key to our success on defense and she was our floor general on offense. Cookie Wilkinson also had a great game for us offensively while Ceara Myers grabbed some huge defensive rebounds late to keep Northwest from getting second chance shots."

Lashaunte Payne (Magee) had nine points with five rebounds, A'Shante Fleming (Canton) had seven points with two rebounds, two assist, and two steals, while Kiersten Haynes (Clinton) had four points with three rebounds.

Jamea Smith (Jackson) had four points and led the team in rebounds with seven while Sequoia Bouldin (Hattiesburg) and Myla Harbor (Ferriday, LA) had two points each to round out the scoring for the Lady Wolves.

Co-Lin improves to 8-3 overall and will return to action with a road contest against Hinds on Saturday, January 13. Tip-off between the Lady Wolves and the Lady Bulldogs is set for 2:00 p.m., at Earl Joe Nelson Court at J.D. Boyd Gym in Utica.