Highlassies defeat Hill in nailbiter

The McLennan Highlassies defeated the Hill Lady Rebels 57-52 in the opener.
 
The buckets were few and far between for both teams in the first half. Jaidyn Fontenette found herself wide open in the corner for a 3-pointer with 8:22 to play in the first quarter to begin the scoring. The Highlassies would lead 3-0 for the next four minutes before an Emily Cunningham layup put Hill on the board. McLennan led 6-4 with 3:26 to go in the first. Back-to-back 3-pointers by Annya Moss and Mele Kaloni Kailahi extended the Highlassies' lead to eight but a 3-pointer by the Lady Rebel's Anndreea Macha cut it to five following a quarter of play, 12-7.
 
McLennan opened the second quarter with an 8-3 run, holding Hill to one bucket in the first seven minutes of the period. The Highlassies led by 11, 23-12, with 2:26 remaining before the half. The Lady Rebels made a run down the stretch, cutting the lead to four. Moss added a bucket for McLennan in the final seconds of the quarter to give the Highlassies the 25-19 lead at intermission.
 
The Highlassies kept the Lady Rebels at arm's length through the majority of the third quarter, extending the lead to 12 at 36-24 with four minutes to go in the period. Hill found a spark late, using a 9-0 run to cut the lead to three. McLennan would lead 39-36 going into the final period.
 
Hill opened the fourth quarter with a 4-0 run to take its first lead of the game at 40-39 with 7:29 to play. Buckets by Seynabou Thiam and Elizabeth Critton put McLennan back on top by three, 43-40. The Lady Rebels tied the game at 50 with two minutes to go and took the lead, 52-50, on a Destanee Roblow bucket with 1:16 to play. Jade Bradley drained a pair of free throws to tie the game and a coast-to-coast layup by Annya Moss gave McLennan the lead. Moss added a free throw and Critton added a pair from the charity stripe for the Highlassies to go up 57-52 with two seconds on the clock and secure the win.
 
Annya Moss led the Highlassies with 18 points and Seynabou Thiam added 12.

McLennan 57, Hill 52
Hill: Andreea Mancha 4 0-0 11; Destanee Roblow 6 0-0 12; Sydney Nunley 3 0-0 8; Tyquanna Ross 0 0-0 0; Daija Planas 0 0-0 0; Kiana Hart 0 0-0 0; Vania Hampton 0 0-0 0; Kertisa Amos 1 0-0 2; Brianna Pena 6 2-2 14; Emily Cunningham 2 0-0 5; Totals: 22 2-2 52.
 
McLennan: Raija Todd 0 0-0 0; Ny'Asia Goldman 3 1-4 8; Kenidi White 0 0-0 0; Jaidyn Fontenette 1 0-0 3; Jade Bradley 2 3-3 7; Mele Kaloni Kailahi 2 0-0 3; Annya Moss 6 3-7; Elizabeth Critton 2 2-2 6; Seynabou Thiam 5 2-6 12; Totals: 20 11-22 57.
 
3-pointers: Hill 6 (Mancha 3, Nunley 2, Pena), McLennan 7 (Moss 4, Todd 1, Fontenette 1, Kailahi 1); Total fouls: Hill 20, McLennan 12; Fouled out: Hill (Roblow); Halftime score: McLennan 25, Hill 19; Record: 13-5 (3-1).