Lady Phoenix drop 2 close 7-4A games
For the first time this season, the Sonoraville High School girls basketball team has lost two games in a row.
But the Lady Phoenix, who are still sporting a pretty nifty .800 winning percentage, are very much alive in the Region 7-4A standings in the jostle for a high seed at the upcoming postseason tournament when the start of the second half of the league schedule began Tuesday night at The Furnace against Southeast Whitfield County. (Details of that game were not available at press time).
With first a tough 44-42 road loss to Northwest Whitfield last Tuesday night and then a 46-40 setback Friday night at home to Heritage, the Lady Phoenix closes the first part of the Region with a 3-2 record for third place.
In a pair of league games last week that could have gone either way until the very end, Sonoraville, which is 3-2 in the 7-4A, fell to the two teams that are now over them in the standings with Northwest Whitfield 5-0 and alone in first place to start this week while Heritage is 4-1 and second.
Central held down the fourth spot heading into Tuesday’s games at 2-3 with Southeast Whitfield County was 1-4 and Cedartown was winless at 0-5 and overall at 0-16.
For the Lady Phoenix, the shots didn’t fall last week like they had been previously. After scoring 55 points or more in seven of the 10 games prior, last week was the first time they’ve been held in the low 40s in backto-back games this season.
In the loss to Heritage, the Phoenix were outscored 13-6 in the fourth quarter after holding a slim onepoint lead, 34-33, to begin the fourth. Sonoraville made just two shots in the final frame, along with two free throws while Heritage hit a three, three buckets and four free throws to rally for the huge 7-4A victory.
Buoyed by two threes from junior guard Brynley Walraven, Sonoraville got out to a 13-10 lead as the first quarter expired.
The visitors would counter with a 13-point second period, but with five different Sonoraville players making a basket, the Phoenix scored 11 points to still lead, 24-23, at halftime.
Two Northwest players scored all their second quarter tallies with Macie Collins, who led all scorers with 24 points, collecting eight of those, with six coming from the foul line. Lauren Mock, who added 15 more for the Lady Bruins, had the other five on a trey and two free throws.
Both teams had 10 points in the third quarter, keeping the Phoenix in front by a point after three.
Senior guard Kayleigh Kelley led Sonoraville with 12 points and sophomore forward Erin Garland added 11 more.
After playing Southeast Whitfield Tuesday, Sonoraville remains in the Region, 7 p.m. this Friday night with a home date against Central, so the Phoenix can definitely help their seeding with a couple of victories this week and after the way they dispensed of both teams in the first go-around, it seems the Big Red will be able to get back on track.
The Phoenix are still an outstanding 16-4 on the season to start this week.