By Leeann Tanner - Staff Writer
Head Coach Hager Easterling and his Lady Raiders know how to have fun on the court, and with a 5-1 record and the EKC Championship title under their belts there is already a lot of fun to be had.
“The team has great chemistry, and that is very important to any sports team,” Easterling said. “Those four seniors and five juniors have played together since third and fourth grade. They enjoy playing together and they are a lot of fun to work with.”
The Lady Raiders took the second round of the EKC Tournament with a 71-30 victory over Lewis County.
Emily Slone led the Lady Raiders in scoring with 13 points. Jessica Marshall put up 11 while Lakota Burge and Ashley Sargent had nine each. Taylor Wilson put up eight and Kristin Easterling had five. Bryana Greenhill and Kelsey Stumbo had four each while Courtney Sparks and Jade Stumbo had three each.
Overall the Lady Raiders hit just over 50-percent from the field and went 6-for-14 at the charity stripe.
On Thursday night, East faced off with Rowan County’s defending Regional Champs for the EKC title. The Lady Raiders came out with a 58-55 win and their first EKC Championship in 26 years.
“I have always held the EKC in high regard,” Easterling said. “I was really glad to see it come back this year.”
East led through most of the game, but not by much. The Lady Raiders led 17-15 at the end of the first quarter, but the Lady Vikings had tied it up, 23-23 at the half. East out scored Rowan 17-11 in the third and the final round was a nail biter as the teams traded the lead shot for shot. Most fans on both sides expected the game to come down to the wire, and they weren’t disappointed. In the end, Kristin Easterling’s four cool shots from the charity stripe put the Lady Raiders over the top.
Marshall and Burge led East in scoring with 15 points each. Easterling put up nine and Spaks had eight. Jordan Parsons sank six while Wilson nailed one from the perimeter. Greenhill added two.
Overall, East went 13-of-18 at the line.
“The kids worked real hard,” Easterling said of both teams. “It was a good early season game between two good teams.”
East suffered their first loss of the season Saturday at Bryan Station, 74-41.
“Bryan Station has a very quick, athletic, and physical team,” Easterling said. “We were dealing with some illness, like everyone is at this point in the season.”
Burge led the Lady Raiders in scoring with 15 points and Easterling had 12. Sparks and Sargent had four each while Slone, J. Stumbo, and Parsons each put up two. East hit just 14-for-49 from the field and 39-percent from the charity stripe.
“We shot terrible,” Easterling said. “It was one of those games you try to learn from and move on.”
And that’s exactly what East’s gals did Monday night, with a win at home over Morgan County, 52-30.
East came out with a lot of energy. The Lady Raiders were focused and ready to play. They pressed in on Morgan County, holding them to just over 33-percent from the field. The Lady Raiders nailed 57-percent from the line and 45-percent from the field.
Easterling and Marshall led the Lady Raiders in scoring with 12 points each. Burge and Slone sank seven each while Parsons put up six. Sargent had five and Sparks nailed one from outside the perimeter.
“A lot of times, you want your team to respond well to a loss, especially their first of the season,” Easterling said. “You have to learn to put the losses behind you, you can’t dwell on it.”
The Lady Raiders will play host to Ashland Blazer on Friday at 7:30 p.m. The Kittens are 3-1 on their season and boast 6-foot-3 center Katelyn Connor, who was favored as the top player in the region in pre-season polls.
“Their style is to try and pound down inside,” Easterling said. “It will come down to who can impose their style. This game will make both teams better, and you go in and go on. It is a long way away from the last week in February.”
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