By Kyle Roberts
MONROE, La. — Every wins counts in February on the quest to make the postseason.
And with the Ruston High Lady Bearcats (12-13) just on the outside looking in, the 52-48 win over Ouachita (18-8) Tuesday night will be critical if the Firmly Founded is going to get into the to 28 teams in the power rankings after the regular season concludes Friday night.
And the Lady Bearcats will have both senior Kiersynce McNeal and sophomore Gioia Tatum to thank for a combined 37-point effort in the victory.
“The girls came out fighting hard on both ends of the floor,” Ruston High head coach LaShanda Cooper said. “We’ve been really stressing the importance of boxing out and executing the game plan and tonight these young ladies worked hard to execute just that. Our leaders did a great job of leading.”
Tatum led the squad with 21 points overall, which included five three-pointers. McNeal added 16 points and scored nine in the first half.
“Gioia hit some big shots for us and really embraced the moment,” Cooper said. “I believe a lot of the girls were fueled from so much energy coming from our bench. It was a great overall team effort.”
The Lady Bearcats took a 15-8 lead into the second quarter after getting seven points from McNeal and six points from Tatum. Freshman Adrianna Robinson added a pair of made free throws.
Ouachita would hold Ruston to just seven points in the second quarter, and the Lady Bearcats took a 22-19 lead into the halftime locker room after baskets by McNeal, senior Jasmine Summerford and sophomore Angelica Green. Junior Journi Douglas added a made free throw.
The Lady Lions would take a 38-36 lead after the third quarter, outscoring Ruston 19-14 in the stanza. Ruston would get six points from Tatum on two more three-pointers, and five points from McNeal. Summerford added a three of her own, as well.
Ruston’s defense would hold in the fourth quarter, keeping Ouachita to only 10 points. The Lady Bearcats added 16 in the final period with nine points from Tatum and four more from Douglas. McNeal added a basket while Summerford added a made free throw.
The Lady Bearcats entered the contest No. 29 in the power rankings and will wait until today to see the updated rankings.
Ruston returns to action Friday, Feb. 14, on the road for the season finale against West Monroe. Tip off is set for 5:30 p.m.
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