FAIRLEA- The Greenbrier East Lady Spartans used a big second half to throttle Class AAA’s number 9 rated team, the St. Albans Lady Red Dragons.
East, the top ranked team in the same class, proved there is quite a difference in the top team in the state and one just sitting closely inside the top 10.
Things got started early and used an 11-0 run to start the game fueled by Ava Workman and Kennedy Stewart. But St. Albans then quickly answered with seven consecutive points of their own and trimmed their deficit to just four points.
With the crowd starting to feel a tad bit restless as the Spartans went a few minutes without a bucket, Sandy Banton hit a 3 from the corner that gave Greenbrier East a 14-7 lead to end the first quarter.
A Stewart basket followed by a huge crowd-pleasing block from Hannah Fuller that led to a Workman layup on the other end put East up 22-11 with 4:00 to go until halftime. Then, a flurry of 3-pointers gave East their biggest lead at the break. Banton drained one and Stewart hit two as the Lady Spartans built a 34-22 advantage at the half.
Mackenna McClure came out in the third quarter and brought the energy and spark needed to lift her team up. She scored six of her team’s first 12 points to start the period and to cap off the third, she hit a shot from downtown and calmly sank two free throws for the final points of the quarter.
After three, East (6-0) was in complete control with a 59-28 lead.
The fourth was all about the reserves for East. Kala Waller got hot and knocked in three trifectas, Myeisha White banked one in from the right wing, Regan Rink was all over the floor, and Maddie Baker contributed as well.
When the buzzer sounded, the scoreboard showed a dominating 38-point victory.
Stewart led the Spartans with 15 points. She added seven rebounds and three assists as well. Workman (13 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists) and McClure (13 points) followed and Banton had 11 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 steals.
East held the Red Dragons’ best player, Trinity Austin-Russell to just four points. She came in averaging 22 per game.
The Lady Spartans are right back on the court tomorrow, Tuesday, Dec. 30 for a battle in the championship game with the 7th ranked Class AAAA team, the Martinsburg Lady Bulldogs. Tipoff time is scheduled for 7:30 PM. The consolation game will begin at 5:30 with St. Albans playing University.
