By T. Scott Boatright
A famous saying taken from Isaiah 11.6 says and a child shall lead them.
While the context may have been different, that’s exactly how the Simsboro Lady Tigers roared to a 49-18 win over Doyline Thursday night inside L.M. Napper Gym.
Eighth-grader Lazorreya Davis led all scorers with 24 points while seventh-grader directed an offense that took over the game from the get-go to lead the Lady Tigers to the win.
“We’re young,” said Simsboro coach Adam Wodach. “But those two have both become a force at such young ages. They’re both really special and will only continue getting better. That’s a big win that we needed as we start preparing for the playoffs.”
With Mitchell quarterbacking the Simsboro offense, it was fittingly Davis who scored first as she stopped and popped a mid-range baseline jump shot to put the Lady Tigers on top 2-0 41 seconds into the contest.
By the end of the opening, Simsboro led 19-2, with Davis scoring her team’s first 13 points.
Davis admits the even younger Mitchell is part of what gives her confidence on the court.
“Coach tells us just to play off each other,” Davis said. “So that’s what we tried to do.”
Doyline hit its first bucket at the 5:39 mark of the opening stanza on a running jump. The Lady Panthers wouldn’t score again for more than a quarter, when a pair of free throws cut Simsboro’s lead to 24-4.
By halftime the Lady Tigers led 33-4.
“This team has a bright future,” Wodach said. “We’re looking forward to the playoffs. This team just keeps on getting better. We’re young, but it’s our two youngest players who provide the spark like they did tonight.”
A running clock that started in the third quarter helped speed up the second, with Simsboro on top 45-14 by the end of the third quarter.
“It feels great doing that,” Mitchell said of earning the win in the Lady Tigers’ regular-season home finale. “It only makes us better getting to play against better competition.
“Winning like we did tonight was great, too. We had just made the playoffs so we had to keep the momentum going.”
Curniya McCallister added six points for Simsboro in her Senior Night game while freshman Jatisia Sears chipped in with five.
Simsboro (8-16) will learn of its opening round playoff fate when the Louisiana High School Athletics Association announces its girls brackets on Monday.
