↓ STINGING DEFENSE LEADS HORNETS TO WIN

By: Matthew A. Anderson

In a battle between #1 New Lothrop and #4 Hamady, it was the same story between this great rivalry. Great defense and cashing in on opportunities are what earned the Hornets a 38-26 win. Amber Sammons led all scorers with 17 in the victory.

The first two minutes of the game provided a blueprint and a glimpse into how the game was going to play out and that buckets would be extremely hard to come by. Hamady was able to break the ice almost 2 minutes in with two straight baskets from Arlesia Morse. Down 4-0, New Lothrop then went on a 9-0 run before the Hawks answered with 3 more points to cut the Hornets' lead down to 9-7 after 1 quarter of play.

The 2nd quarter was more of the same with both teams trading blows and the lead. Hamady, like the 1st quarter, scored the opening 4 of the 2nd quarter to regain the lead at 11-9. New Lothrop outscored Hamady 7-4 the rest of the way to take a 16-15 lead into halftime.

The third quarter still saw both teams with equal opportunities to take control of the game. The biggest sequence of the game came when Amber Sammons and Jade Gerber scored back to back three balls to extend their lead to 6 points at 24-18, with just over 2 minutes remaining in the quarter. Hamady answered with a bucket, slicing the lead to 24-20 after 3.

Another huge blow, which also came from downtown, was a three ball by Sammons to open the 4th quarter scoring. The Hornets kept the ball for over a minute on the possession, just waiting and being patient for an open shot to come available. It did and Sammons was all alone at the top of the key, nailing the shot, putting the Hornets up 27-20, which would end up being the winning basket. Hamady was held to just 6 points in the quarter, while New Lothrop padded their lead and iced the game at the end with free throws from Morgan Wendling and Amber Sammons, making it final at 38-26.

Sammons led all scorers with 16 points while Morse led Hamady with 14. New Lothrop will host Hamady on February 23rd during the last week of the regular season, which will more than likely decide at least a share of the GAC Blue title.