There are notches programs have to earn as they build to greatness. You have the notch where your team has a couple of good players. You have the notch where you have a good team for a year. Then you reach the Mansfield Jr High Lady Tiger pinnacle of being the year in and year out top pilar that everyone sees as the standard of basketball. On Thursday, December 17th, the Lady Tigers traveled to Golden Arrow territory in Lavaca and left the Jr Lady Golden Arrows rusting on the court with a 43-14 victory.
Mansfield started out with what could be considered a slow start as they had problems getting simple baskets to go in. The Jr Lady Golden Arrows kept the pressure on Mansfield and build a fort on the boards giving the Lady Tigers fits in the rebounding department. The Lady Tigers’ defense was pretty salty too as they kept Lavaca shut down. When the 1st quarter buzzer sounded, Mansfield led 18-3.
Mansfield continued their defensive demeanor strong going into the second quarter as their superstars emerged stronger than ever. Steal Queen Kynslee Ward opened up her shop on Lavaca and closed their hopes of scoring with steal after steal after steal earning 7 in the game. Wards little but not so little sister, Kaylee, was still stuck in Thanksgiving mode as she stuffed any Arrows who dared to drive to the bucket. Mixing in the soft shot offense of Alyson Edwards and Harlie “Hot Shot” Fuller’s three-pointers and the Lady Tigers walked into the half with a commanding 30-3 lead.
An impressive first half doesn’t mean your program is great though. Any team can do that at some point. What makes a team great is the consistency and depth of talent they have. The Jr Lady Tigers charts listed every team member with either points, rebounds, deflections, steals, or assists. This led to a 43-14 victory over a Lavaca team that is not a laydown squad by any means. Leading the team in points was Kynslee Ward with 11 followed by Kaylee Ward who had 10 points. Harlie Fuller sank 9 points worth of buckets with 3 three-pointers and Alyson Edwards had 8 points. Shelbie Fuller scored 3 points and Trinity Triska rounded out the final total with 2.
Greatness comes with a target though and the Jr Lady Tigers have quite the bullseye on them as they are currently undefeated 6-0. The next hunter zoning in on the Lady Tigers is Monroe. After playing Monroe once this season and winning 44-13, Mansfield knows that they are aware of the Lady Tigers’ tactics and have prepared for round two. Fortunately, Mansfield has also prepared and is ready to take on all who challenge them.
