Pilots Fly Over Eagles
On Dec. 12 the Magnolia Lady Blue Eagles welcomed the Lady Pilots of River High School, who took home a 54-45 victory from the MHS HammerDome.
The Pilots took control of the tip and jumped out to a 9-0 lead. The run was highlighted by a Jordan Ramsey basket from beyond the arc, followed by a Ramsey two-pointer. When the Lady Blue took over, Magnolia point guard Padyn Ludewig netted two buckets to trim the Pilot lead to 11-4.
Jordan Babe then hit a long bomb for the Eagles before both teams exchanged buckets. Ramsey was up to her old tricks, knocking in another threeball, while teammate Cassidy McCullough added a basket to extend their advantage to 18-9. But, two straight deuces by Ludewig closed the gap to 18-13 after one period of play.
The Eagles scored four of the first five points to start the second half, but the Pilots would go on an 8-0 run to go up 27-17. Ludewig quickly answered, however, with a three pointer of her own. She also netted a free throw, but a bucket from the Pilots’ Megan Beard made the score 29-21, River, at the break.
Lady Eagle Marissa Bosley hit a long range bucket at the beginning of the second half. But two buckets by Ramsey, a bucket by Alexa Isaly, and a threeball from Autumn Beisel pushed the Pilots’ lead to 40-26. After an Isaly deuce, the Eagles took a time out to cool the Pilots down with the deficit quickly growing, 42-26 in the visitors’ favor.
The teams traded buckets after the timeout. However, a Beard free throw and a buzzer-beating hoop by Chelsey Smith pushed the River advantage to 49-31 after three periods of play.
Early in the fourth, buckets by Babe and Abby Harlan, plus a three pointer by Ludewig, cut the River lead to 11 at 49-38.
But, an Ashley Imhoff charity toss combined with another bucket from Isaly to push River’s lead to 53-38. However, Harlan swished four free throws and made a deuce down the stretch, while teammates Ludewig and Bosley added buckets for the final points of the game.
Nine Lady Pilots tallied points in the contest, with Ramsey leading the way with a team-high 18 points that included a three pointer. Isaly added 13 markers, while Beard netted six points. McCullough and Imhoff each scored four points, while Beisel contributed three points from beyond the arc. Smith, Whitney Hammel, and Emily Griffith each added two points for the Lady Pilots.
Ludewig turned in her third consecutive game of 20+ points. Harlan added 13 points, including a basket from downtown. Babe contributed nine points and hit a long range bomb, while Bosley added five points that included a three pointer.
The Lady Pilots take on rival Caldwell at home on Dec. 17, with the junior varsity game scheduled to tipoff at 6 p.m. On the same date and time, the Lady Eagles will host Ritchie County.