WEST ALEXANDRIA — The inside game of Dixie proved to be too much for Twin Valley South to handle.
The Greyhounds dominated the paint during the second half against the host Panthers on Monday, Jan. 4, to claim a 55-35 win in a girls varsity basketball game.
Trailing 20-17 at the break, South was outscored 19-10 in the third quarter and 35-18 overall in the second half.
“Honestly, the first half was a really good game,” South coach Lindsey Cole said. “I mean, we came in knowing that we were undersized by a lot. But I thought Taylor Clark, Macy Davidson, Ellie Webb, Pearle Rollyson, the crew of them did a really good job taking turns playing good man to man.
“We really had to work hard the first half and we did a great job. We tried to go zone at the start of the second and they just ate us up. They overloaded the corner. They worked it in. Worked it back out, made a few outside shots and once they had the momentum, we got down on ourselves really quick and let it get out of hand in the third quarter. But I think their size ultimately was our downfall.”
Dixie’s Sierra Brinson led all scorers with 17 points.
For South, Maycie Davidson had a team-high 11 points. Abby McGuire and Makiah Newport each contributed eight.
“I thought we matched up really well against them, and even not full staffed. I still thought we were coming into this with a good match up. But if we have everybody here then it makes for a really fun game, I think,” Cole said of the absence of senior Mackenzie Neal.
Cole said her team also struggled against the Greyhounds’ full-court press.
“We didn’t show enough discipline in getting the ball into our guards with a full-court press. I mean, that hurt us a little bit. It all added up. It was more than just the size,” she said.
Cole said she is proud of the way her team fought until the very end.
“And that’s the message I told the girls said; no matter what the scoreboard says, never give up, you know, no matter what the score is. We can not give up,” she said.
Also last week, South fell to Arcanum 85-26.
The Panthers were schedule to host Brookville on Tuesday, Jan. 12 and will travel to Bradford on Jan. 14, before closing out the week hosting Franklin-Monroe on Jan. 16.
