District play for the Stone Memorial Lady Panthers got off to a promising start Tuesday night as SMHS traveled to Warren County and defeated the Lady Pioneers 54-28. Sophomore post Tessa Miller recorded a double-double for Stone Memorial with 10 points and 12 rebounds.
“There’s always a little concern having to travel this far,” said Lady Panthers coach Mike Buck. “They want to play a slow, methodical game, plus we hadn’t played in quite a while. Trying to find out game rhythm is tough in games that matter: district games.”
The Lady Panthers were sluggish for about five minutes before a 12-0 SMHS run ended the first period to give Stone Memorial an 18-6 lead. Senior Alex Eldridge hit a buzzer-beating three pointer for SMHS.
It was all Stone Memorial from there as the Lady Panthers led 32-13 at halftime. Miller and Eldridge each had eight first-half points along with six from Emma Capps.
SMHS held Warren County to only six points in the third quarter to lead 46-19 going into the fourth period, winning by a final score of 54-28.
Balanced scoring is a staple of the Lady Panthers, and that was on display Tuesday. Miller, Emily Boyd and Keaton Freitag each finished with 10 points in the contest along with nine from Eldridge.
“The games ultimately come down to us,” said coach Buck on sustaining success through a long season. “Can we execute and do what we’re supposed to do? As long as we do what we do at a high level, we’ll be fine. I think it matters to our girls. When we lock in, we’re pretty special.”
The Lady Panthers are now 11-3 on the season and 1-0 in District 6AAA play. SMHS travels to Rhea County on Friday to face the Golden Eagles.
Stone Memorial (54): Tessa Miller 10, Emily Boyd 10, Keaton Freitag 10, Alex Eldridge 9, Annah Goss 7, Emma Capps 6, Katie Adkisson 1, Kimberlyn Cash 1
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