Lady Outlaws take third at Seaside

The Lady Outlaws basketball team traveled to the coast to attend the Seaside Holiday Classic Tournament, held Thursday through Saturday, December 19-21. Sisters played well against top teams and earned a third-place finish. Madras took first place and Seaside was runner-up.

Sisters defeated Newport 42-20 on Thursday in their first game of the tourney. It was a very physical match-up, and the Outlaws were a bit shell-shocked at the start.

Newport jumped out quick and at the close of the first quarter held a 13-6 lead over the Outlaws. Sisters was unable to adjust and at the half trailed 26-12.

The Outlaws came out in the second half and were a different team. They were ready for the physical play, pushed back against Newport and hit their shots.

Sisters hit three shots from behind the arc in the third quarter, two from Boston Moore and one from Cassandra Arruda, which changed the momentum of the game. Jacobie Petterson's two buckets were also a big help in shifting control of the game over to the Outlaws.

Although the Outlaws were only able to convert on three of their seven free-throw shots in the final quarter, they maintained control of the game.

With 1:30 left in the game, Savannah Spear made a two-point shot and was fouled. Spear converted on the shot and the Outlaws took a four-point lead.

Newport was able to get to the foul line but weren't able to convert on their shots. Sisters got the ball back and hung on to the end.

Spear led the Outlaws in scoring with 11 points and Moore contributed 10. Petterson chipped in eight points and Claire Henson added six.

On Friday, the Outlaws fell 51-26 to Madras.

Sisters played even with the White Buffaloes at the start and were only down by four points at the half with a score of 23-19.

The Outlaws took good looks at the basket in the second half but just couldn't find the bottom of the net.

"We did everything we needed to do, but the ball just wouldn't fall," said Coach Julianne Horner. "We showed a big improvement on defense compared to the last time we played them but we just couldn't convert on our shots."

Spear tallied nine points for the Outlaws and Petterson scored eight.

On Saturday afternoon, the Outlaws beat Elma, a team out of Washington, in a final score of 57-48 for a third-place finish.

Sisters jumped out with the lead in the first quarter and never looked back. The Outlaws kept the lead for the entire contest.

Horner told The Nugget that the Outlaws played great defense and never had one mental lapse throughout the contest.

"Whenever they hit a three-pointer, or got a steal and started to pull back in, we never dropped our heads but just did our assignments," said Horner. "We never let them back in."

Spear hit five buckets for the Outlaws and was 12/13 from the free-throw line and led the Outlaws with 22 points on the night. Petterson scored 10 points, all from the free-throw line. Cierra Mann recorded nine points, and Moore and Henson each chipped in four points.

Horner said, "I'm really proud of how positive the girls were and how they worked together as a team. It was definitely a team win.

"I'm definitely proud of the girls' performance all three games of the tournament," added Horner. "We played strong in our first game against Newport, then better against Madras than previously, and we finished strong against Elma. All three teams were really good teams."

Earlier in the week, on Tuesday, Sisters lost 72-47 at home against Summit. The Outlaws made it a tight game in the first half and only trailed by three at the half with the score at 29-26.

"We were right with Summit and held our own," said Horner. "We were able to get inside position and Claire (Henson), Savannah (Spear) and Boston (Moore) were making their shots to be neck-and-neck going into

halftime.

"Our defense was keeping them from getting out and running and we were playing well as a team," added Horner.

Sisters got a slow start in the third and the Storm went on a 10-point run. The Outlaws were never able to catch back up.

"Against teams like we have been facing, we cannot ever have a mental lapse on the floor," said Horner. "We are learning to be "on' at all times and not let teams make runs like Summit was able to do. I was happy with the team effort and they are getting better each time we take the floor. We knew going into the pre-league schedule we would face tough competition, which is only making us better and stronger for league play."

The Outlaws will play at home in their annual Sisters Holiday Tournament, which will be held Thursday through Saturday, January 2-4.