LMS cagers find success against Worland after holiday

The Lovell Middle School girls basketball squads got back into regular season play following the Thanksgiving holiday with games against conference rival Worland Tuesday.

The seventh-grade Lady Mustangs traveled to Worland. The A team finished on top with a 41-15 win. The Mustangs led 9-2 after the first quarter, then kept their momentum and finished the half in a ten-point lead, 17-7. The Lady Mustangs finished strong, scoring 24 more points in the second half to win in dominating fashion over the Worland Warriors by 26 points.

“The girls are continuing to progress and make strides with both their offense and team chemistry,” coach Collin McArthur said. “I really like how they are starting to work as a whole and come out aggressive in their games. This weekend should be a good test and preparation for the conference tournament next week.”

The seventh-grade Lady Mustang B team worked hard, as well, to come out victorious. The Lady Mustangs built a six-point lead by halftime, 16-10, and went on to win 28-18.

Eighth grade

The eighth-grade Lady Mustangs beat Worland 37-28 at home Tuesday. In the first quarter Avery Walker and Ali Walker both had 2 points while Ava Edwards had 3 points as the Lady Mustangs trailed 9-7. Edwards scored 5 points in the second quarter as the home team stayed close, trailing 15-14 at the break.

Heading into the second half, the Mustangs fought for a win. In the third quarter Lovell outscored Worland 10-8 to lead 24-23, and the Lady Mustangs pulled away in the fourth to win by nine as Avery and Ali Walker scored 2 points each, Edwards 2, Carlee Herman 3 and Jaycie Allen 4.

“ Worland challenged us,” coach Josey Alley said. “They came out really aggressive on defense and attacking in transition. We didn’t respond really well initially, but as the game work on, our girls found their determination, defended smarter and harder and attacked the basket better. We did a great job sharing the ball and making good decisions offensively. We outscored them 13-5 in the fourth quarter to come away with a good win.

“We have a big game at home against Cody on Thursday. They will be hungry to beat us after we went into their place and won a couple weeks ago. We will need to be ready. On Saturday we will be splitting up with five girls going to Cody to play in the jamboree and the rest going to Worland to play our only conference game against Riverton. It will be an important game for seeding for the conference tournament, so we need to be at our best. It›s an exciting time of the season where you know every game matters.”

The Lady Mustangs take on Cody today (Thursday) at 4:15 p.m. with the seventh graders in Cody and the eighth graders at home. Saturday, the A teams meet Lander and Riverton in Riverton while the B teams compete at jamborees in Lander (seventh grade) and Cody (eighth grade).