Lady Wolves Grind Out Overtime Win

BOONEVILLE – The Co-Lin Women's Basketball team returned to MACCC play on the road against Northeast on Saturday, January 31. The Lady Wolves erased a late-game deficit and forced overtime where they earned a hard-fought 72-68 victory over the Lady Tigers.

The Lady Wolves came out red hot offensively as they opened the game with a 7-0 run and took a lead by that margin after a jumper by Akeelah Hobson (Oakdale, LA) with 6:42 left in the first quarter. The Lady Tigers responded with a 10-4 scoring run to cut the Lady Wolves lead down to 14-10 with 3:19 remaining. Both teams then closed out the quarter by adding seven points to their totals as the Lady Wolves held a 21-17 lead at the end of play.

The Lady Wolves opened the second quarter with a 5-1 scoring run making the score, 26-18, after a three by Zion Nelson (Byram) with 7:13 left on the clock. The Lady Tigers then responded a 9-5 scoring run, but the Lady Wolves maintained their lead, 31-27, after a made layup by Tyra Johnson (Morton) with 3:41 remaining in the first half. The Lady Tigers then looked to close out the half holding a one-point lead; however, a pair of free throws by Kamaiyah Pruitt (Pass Christian) gave the Lady Wolves a 33-32 lead as the teams entered the locker rooms at halftime.

The Lady Tigers opened the second half with an 8-2 scoring run to take a 40-35 lead over the Lady Wolves with 6:36 left in the third quarter. Both teams then added six points to their scoring totals as the Lady Tigers held a 46-41 lead with 2:05 remaining. The Lady Wolves then closed out the third quarter with a 4-3 scoring run as a jumper by Hobson cut the lead down to 49-45.

The Lady Tigers once again started a quarter red hot offensively as they opened the fourth with an 8-2 scoring run to push their lead to 57-47 with 6:18 left to play. However, the Lady Wolves responded with a 10-2 scoring run capped off by three made free throws by Eymani Key (Lafayette, LA) cutting the lead down 59-57 with 2:44 left to play in regulation. The Lady Wolves then used strong defense along with the offensive pairing of Pruitt and Key to outscore the Lady Tigers, 5-2, to close out the game as Pruitt made the tying layup with 11 seconds left while Jalyn Applewhite (Gulfport) blocked a potential game-winning layup by the Lady Tigers sending the game into overtime at 62-62.

The strong defense for the Lady Wolves continued into the overtime period as they limited the Lady Tigers second chance scoring opportunities and outscored them, 10-6, to secure the 72-68 victory.

The Lady Wolves had three players in double-digit scoring figures as Akeelah Hobson led the scoring with 20 points, five rebounds, five assists, and one steal while Kamaiyah Pruitt posted a double-double with 19 points and 15 rebounds with three assists and four steals with Eymani Key added 17 points with five rebounds, three assists, and one steal.

Amari Barnes (Tylertown) had five points, while Tyra Johsnon had four points with Jalynn Applewhite and Zion Nelson adding three points each while Applewhite also had five rebounds, one steal, and two blocks. Maddison Mitchell (Baton Rouge, LA) had one point to round out the scoring for the Lady Wolves.

Co-Lin is now 11-5 overall, 3-2 in MACCC play and will return to action hosting Coahoma on Saturday, February 7. Tip-off between the Lady Tigers and Lady Wolves is set for 1 p.m., at Mullen Gym in Wesson.