Lovell girls hold off Lady Grizz comeback

The crosstown showdown between the Lovell Lady Bulldogs and Rocky Mountain Lady Grizzlies gave fans an exciting performance on Tuesday night in Cowley as Lovell won 36-30.
Kenadee Rael drove down the lane and dished an assist to Summer Teter to start the game, then got a steal and layup of her own, followed by two free throws by Libby Mickelson to jump out to an early 6-0 Lady Bulldog lead.
The Lady Grizz struggled getting shots to fall but got on the board with a pair of free throws by Tarynn Schoening and another by Keylee Christiansen to end the quarter 6-3 Lovell.
Rocky’s shooting woes continued in the second quarter, and the only field goal of the quarter came from MacKelle Moss, knocking in a jump shot with less than a minute left before halftime.
Lovell scored on another attack to the rim by Rael, a baseline jumper from Krysta McIntosh and a crossover layup by Breeah Jones to take a 12-6 lead after two complete quarters.
Both coaches were pleased with their team’s defensive efforts in the half but knew there was still a lot of basketball left to play. The Lady Grizz ended the half only 1-of-18 from the field and looked to bounce back in the third.
With only a six-point lead, the door was still open for the Lady Grizz, and a 13-point third quarter kept them in the hunt led by six points from Lauren Bassett and a couple of free throws and an offensive rebound put-back by Shelby Wambeke.
Lovell again found success close to the rim on a drive from Teter and Mickelson making a basket and drawing the foul to remain up 16-13 before Rocky went up 17-16 with 2:20 left in the third.
Kennadee Owens answered right back for Lovell with a nice up-and-under move to regain the lead, 18-17. Jones extended that lead by knocking down a three-pointer on the next possession.
Schoening ended the third with a jumper from the block for Rocky to head into the final quarter down 21-19.
The Lady Grizz weren’t giving up yet, with Moss sinking a basket and knocking down a free throw to start the fourth quarter and gaining a 22-21 lead.
Teter responded with two straight field goals for Lovell, and a Raegan May trey put Lovell back up, 28-22.
Other than Rocky Mountain mixing in a couple of baskets the last half of the quarter, it became a free throw game with Lovell scoring eight from the line and Rocky going 5-for-10 down the stretch to end the game with Lovell on top, 36-30.
“I thought we battled hard tonight,” Rocky Mountain head coach Justin Moss said. “I’m proud of our girls for only giving up 36 points in the game. We gave good effort throughout defensively even though we really struggled offensively in the first half.”
Too many turnovers and rushed shots hurt the Lady Grizz, and he also credited Lovell’s scrappy and physical play for getting them out of rhythm.
“We could have stopped playing after the first half that we had offensively, but we fought and battled back,” Moss continued. “That’s the kind of girls we have. We’re tough, gritty girls that will go to war. I have no doubt that we will respond to this and get better.”
Lovell’s head coach, Chris Edwards, also felt the Lady Bulldogs struggled offensively throughout the game.
“I felt like our girls responded well in a tough environment tonight against a solid team,” Edwards said. “I am proud of the girls for finding a way to win a game when our shots weren’t falling, and we didn’t play exceptionally well offensively.
“Unfortunately, we rushed quite a few possessions, which led to turnovers and rushed shots. Their zone packed the paint and forced a lot of perimeter shots. We found the best success as we attacked the center of the zone and got to the front of the rim. Over the break it will be nice to get some solid practice in to tighten up some assignments defensively and get ourselves more cohesive offensively.”
Both teams now head into Christmas break before resuming games in January.
For Lovell, Teter finished with 8 points, Rael and Jones had 7 each, May 5, Mickelson 4, Owens 3 and McIntosh 2.
Bassett led Rocky Mountain with 10 points, and Moss put in 7 of her own. Wambeke finished with 5, Schoening 4, Christiansen 3 and Boettcher 1.
JV match
The Lovell junior varsity squad edged Rocky Mountain’s girls in the auxiliary gym on Tuesday night in Cowley, 38-36.
Celeste Lindsay scored an impressive 16 points in the game to lead Lovell. Jenna Hessenthaler scored 6, Kaydree Owens 5, Brooklin Clark 4, Kindle Collins 3 and both Hannity Felkins and Becca Nichols 2.
The Lady Grizz JV fought until the end but came up just short behind 11 points from Sharlotte Hanusa, 9 by Kaysie Cooley, Christiansen 4, Charlee Welling 3 and Layla Gardner, Emma Sponsel and Elliahna Scheeler 2 points apiece.