By Kyle Roberts
WINNFIELD, La. — Another night of hot-shooting by sophomore Gioia Tatum helped propel Ruston High (10-11) to a road win at Winnfield by a final score of 67-24 in a midweek non-district matchup.
“The girls came out playing hard from the tip,” Ruston High School head coach LaShanda Cooper said. “We’ve been really stressing defense and effort. We played well on both ends. We looked more confident with are shooting. We did a good job of limiting our turnovers tonight.
“We have a big district game coming up on Friday and we need another win on the road.”
Ruston shot out to an early 24-5 lead in the first quarter, thanks to nine points by Tatum on three three-pointers. Sophomore Bailee Harrison added seven points on three baskets, while both sophomore Angelica Green and junior Journi Douglass both added a three-pointer.
Tatum added nine more points in the second, while senior Jasmine Summerford added a pair of baskets, as well. Freshman Adrianna Robinson added six points in the periond, while senior Kiersynce McNeal finished the quarter with four points, putting Ruston up 47-11 at halftime and forcing a running clock for the second half.
McNeal finished with nine points of her own in the third quarter, while Green and Summerford both added a basket to put Ruston up 60-18 going into the fourth quarter.
Douglas added five points in the fourth, while Green would get a basket, herself in the final stanza.
Tatum led the Lady Bearcats with 18 points, while McNeal totaled 13.
Ruston will return to action Friday, Feb. 7, at 5:30 in a road district matchup with ASH.
