After contesting their first two conference games on the road, the Lady Pioneers and Pioneers would play host to the Paragould Lady Rams and Rams Friday night at Pioneer Gymnasium with a senior high doubleheader in 5A East conference action.
In the opener, the Lady Pioneers would take on the (10-1)(3-0) conference-leading Lady Rams who have one of the most talented lineups in all of the classification — even with eight players on their roster.
Both teams would come out firing in the first quarter as the Lady Rams would take a 14-10 lead into the first break. Senior Taylor Rush would hit two threes in the second adding to her basket in the first, but the Lady Rams would once again outscore the Lady Pioneers 14 to 8 in the second quarter and would take a ten-point lead into halftime. Despite twelve more points from Rush, the Lady Rams would outscore Batesville in the next two quarters and would capture the victory by a final of 53 to 34.
Leading the Lady Pioneers in scoring was Rush with 21 points, seniors Olivia Everetts and Emily Harrison would chip in 5 and 4 points respectively, and senior Anna-Clair Ezell and junior Abby Hurley would add in two apiece.
In the nightcap, the Pioneers and Rams would each be seeking their first conference win on the season in a matchup that had several twists and turns and momentum shifts throughout. The Pioneers would start quick, putting the Rams in an early hole leading 15 to 11 at the end of the first quarter behind junior Cory Cothrine and senior JT Morgan with seven and six points between them. The Rams would battle back in the second and outscore the Pioneers 17 to 12 and would take a one-point lead into the halftime break. The pace would pick up in the second, getting a bit choppy at times, but the Rams would extend their lead in the third despite four Pioneer three-pointers and two baskets by Morgan. In a back and forth final quarter that saw the lead switch multiple times, the Rams would pull away late at the free-throw line and would defeat the Pioneers by a final of 66 to 55.
Three Pioneers would score in double digits as senior JT Morgan would lead the way with 16, junior Cory Cothrine would put up a season-high for himself at 15, and sophomore Matthew Hendrix would follow with 11. Just missing out on double digits was senior Wes Lange with nine points, and senior Logan McSpadden would chip in four.
The Lady Pioneers and Pioneers will now get set for another long road trip as they will head to Marion Tuesday night to take on the conference-leading Patriots for another senior high doubleheader. Senior girls action will tip-off around 6 p.m. with the senior boys to follow and can be heard on 93 KZLE, online at WhiteRiverNow.com, and on the White River Now mobile app.
Article by Wes Gwaltney, The Voice of Pioneer Basketball on 93 KZLE
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