Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Observations all along the line - Kimball & the Southern Panhandle First
Kimball's Chantel Malson (11) Payton Wise (13) and Sydney Biesecker look to contain Potter-Dix's Mikayla Lee during the Longhorns' 66-36 victory.
The Kimball girls basketball team got back into the winner's column after dropping three in a row at the re-start of their season.
On Tuesday, Jan. 12, the Lady Longhorns hosted Potter-Dix, another struggling team, and the Lady Coyotes inability to score was exactly what Kimball needed to end its losing streak.
Kimball started fast in the first quarter. The Lady Longhorns defense blocked lanes, caused turnovers and gave the Potter-Dix squad no uncontested shots. After building a 22-8 lead after the first period, Kimball had another strong showing in the second quarter to extend the lead to 40-16 at halftime. Potter-Dix had no answers against the strong defense, and Kimball went on to win, 66-36. Kimball had three scorers in double digits, led by senior Megan Spicer's 17 points. Also scoring for Kimball were Sydney Biesecker and Payton Wise with 16 each, Amy Birkhofer 6, Maddison Merryfield 4, Emma Patterson, Chantel Malson and Sarinda Bateman with 2 each, and Katie Heeg 1.
Kimball couldn't carry over that success against their next opponent, the extremely tough Bridgeport Lady Bulldogs. Bridgeport opened a nine-point lead after the first quarter and shut down Kimball's offense in the second quarter, only allowing four points and building a 34-12 halftime lead. A 20-3 third quarter in favor of Bridgeport slammed the door on Kimball, and the Lady Bulldogs went on to a 67-22 victory. Spicer again led the Kimball scoring with 9 points. Also scoring for Kimball were Sydney Biesecker and Payton Wise with 4 each, Chantel Malson 3 and Katie Heeg 2.
Kimball traveled on Saturday to face another strong opponent in the Gordon-Rushville Lady Mustangs, who led 19-3 lead at the end of the first quarter and 33-8 at the half.
The teams played a tight third quarter with both defenses dominating, but Gordon-Rushville turned on the jets in the fourth quarter with a 25-5 scoring outburst that put the game away. The final score was 66-21. Spicer again led the scoring for Kimball with 8 points. Also scoring for Kimball were Katie Heeg with 5, Chantel Malson 4, Sydney Biesecker 2, and Payton Wise and Maddison Merryfield with 1 each.
The Lady Longhorns were scheduled for SPVA Tournament action this week on Tuesday and Friday at NPCCC.
