In the world of SR High Girls basketball, few games have lived up to the hype as Mansfield versus Acorn. The two programs have ripped up the hardwoods, set them on fire, and torn down buildings over the past few years with some truly epic games. Unfortunately, the two Lady Tiger teams will not face off in conference play this season due to conference realignments. But there’s nothing that says these two pinnacle programs still can’t square off in a tournament format. So, on Wednesday, November 30th Mansfield and Acorn met up to let the claws fly like old times in Round2 of the Booneville Classic.
The Lady Tigers started off the game a little slow as Acorn was able to put up points first on the scoreboard. Mansfield was able to get multiple shots off but couldn’t seem to get those shots on target with the basket. Acorn would again get an easy layup in on the Lady Tigers, but Alyson Edwards answered back with a smooth jump shot to get Mansfield on the board. Trinity Triska followed Edwards up by swooping in with a steal and score to tie the game up at 4-4 forcing Acorn to call a time-out. Even though there was a brief spirit of action, the normally high-scoring basketball game everyone expected wasn’t anywhere to be found. After a slew of missed shots, fouls, turnovers, and just downright sluggish play by both teams, the first quarter ended with a mere 6-4 Acorn lead.
Acorn jumped quickly on the Lady Tigers to begin the second quarter with an unopposed layup. Alyson Edwards came right back with some solid defense though by swatting down an Acorn shot sending the Mansfield benches into a frenzy. With a defensive stop by Edwards, it was time for some offense and Natalie Allison was just the player for the job. Allison took aim and the “whoosh” sound of nothing but net rang out as she drained a three-point shot. Acorn hit a three of their own to regain the lead, but Alyson Edwards would not allow Mansfield to be shown up and reared back and sank a three-pointer of her own. In a rush to slow down the Lady Tigers momentum, Acorn decided to quickly get their ensuing inbound passed fast in but instead of the ball finding a blue jersey, the pass went straight to Harlie Fuller who dished the ball to Kynslee Ward for yet another Lady Tiger three-pointer. Mansfield was still down though as the clock ticked toward halftime. If Acorn thought they could extend their lead before the half, they were dead wrong. Mansfield forced a turnover and Kaylee Ward was able to dish in a layup to close the gap to one point on the scoreboard. Although Mansfield didn’t have the lead going into the half down 17-16, it was clear that they were starting to get hot.
Mansfield came out of the half and now faced a full-court press by Acorn. The defensive move by Acorn worked at first, but once the Lady Tigers found the gaps in Acorn’s armor, it was all but over. Alyson Edwards tattooed her name on the backboards by snatching rebounds and earning put-back points at nearly every turn. Kynslee Ward snatched a rebound and passed to an open Natalie Allison for an easy layup. After a steal and another three-pointer was swished by Natalie Allison, Acorn had to call a time-out to regroup. The regrouping seemed to be more beneficial to Mansfield though as the fans watched Alyson Edwards, Kaylee Ward, and Natalie Allison go in sync for layups. Things were rolling downhill fast and Acorn was desperate to score. One of their players loaded up for a three-point shot with one second left on the clock but once the ball was released, Kaylee Ward drilled the ball back to the floor with a massive blocked shot. On that note, the buzzer sounded at the ending of the third quarter with Mansfield leading Acorn 30-24.
The Lady Tigers kicked off the fourth and final quarter with a seven-point run led by two Seven Sanderson board buckets and a Natalie Allison three-pointer. Mansfield continued their dominance all the way down to the 2:03 mark before Acorn scored their first fourth-quarter points. The Lady Tigers didn’t slow down any with Acorn’s basket though as Alyson Edwards and Kaylee Ward continued to pass the ball down low to Seven Sanderson who would power her way for points. Kynslee Ward sank another Lady Tiger three-pointer to give Mansfield a 20-point lead in the game. Acorn tried to make a comeback, but Mansfield was just too strong as the Lady Tigers extended their record to 6-0 with a 48-32 win over Acorn. Mansfield senior Natalie Allison led the team in scoring with 15 points in the game followed by Alyson Edwards who finished with 11 points. Kynslee Ward and Seven Sanderson paired up for 8 points apiece while Kaylee Ward and Trinity Triska closed out the scoring with a combined 6 points. Mansfield will continue their Booneville Classic tournament run on Saturday, December 3rd when they take on the Dover Lady Pirates in the tournament championship game.
