Girls basketball beats top-ranked JC

The Lady Outlaws earned a 25-22 victory over No. 7 ranked Junction City (JC) on Tuesday, January 20.

Sisters jumped out to an early 11-3 lead before JC cut the Outlaw lead to two at the half. At halftime the Outlaws led 11-9.

The Outlaws continued to execute both on offense and defense. Sisters held the lead the entire game. JC went on multiple runs and tied it up in the fourth quarter but Sisters fought them off each time. Every time the Tigers made a run Sisters came back with a big bucket.

"No shot was bigger than Nicole Meadors' three-point field goal late in the fourth quarter which put us up by four," said Coach Kevin Cotner.

The Outlaws maintained the lead and went on to secure the win by three in a final score of 25-22.

Cotner said, "Coming into the game I thought we were well matched against Junction City. We knew that they would man us up, and I thought that we had a pretty good game plan going in. It was just up to the girls to execute. And they did. The girls earned this victory tonight. They were the more disciplined and patient team and capitalized on turnovers and offensive possessions.

"I think that the story of the game though was our defensive intensity," added Cotner. "We held the No. 7 team in the state to 22 points. They had no transition points, and very few second-chance points. This type of defense will keep you in a lot of basketball games."

Defensively, the Outlaws were led by Kiana Jiminez who finished with nine boards and four blocks on the night. Danelle Allen, with her on-ball pressure was also a key player in the Outlaw win.

Marin Allen finished with eight points on the night, and Nicole Meadors followed with seven.

Cotner made special note of Jenny Kaiser.

"Jenny continues to make her comeback from a low leg injury and is seeing increasing minutes each game. I think that she will prove to be a factor and a force as we begin our second round of league competition," said Cotner.

The Lady Outlaws will be on the road for their next two games. Sisters will face No. 2-ranked Cottage Grove on Tuesday, January 27 and three days later take on the Marist Spartans.