FAIRMONT, W.Va. — Winfield overcame a slow start with a strong second quarter, before closing the third with perhaps their best stretch of the contest to pull away from Lincoln for a 74-64 victory Monday in the East Fairmont Classic.
The Cougars (7-3) held a 13-3 lead just beyond the midway point of the opening quarter. The Generals, however, didn’t take long to get squarely back in the game and cut the deficit to 19-16 after one period.
Winfield (11-1) carried that momentum into the second quarter and took its first lead since 5-3 when Emily Hudson scored inside for a 26-24 advantage with 3:30 to play in the opening half.
After the Cougars’ Victoria Sturm connected from behind the arc to trim Winfield’s lead to 30-27, the Generals closed the first half with a 9-0 run capped by Lauren Hudson’s buzzer-beating triple.
“Sometimes their bodies go so fast and their brains aren’t catching up with everything else,” WHS head coach Kelsey Spang said. “Especially in that first quarter, it was essential for the girls to get everything squared away and get into a rhythm. Then we got into our bread-and-butter press.”
But Lincoln immediately got back in the game at the outset of the second half, rattling off nine unanswered points and drawing to within three after Allison Rockwell scored insie.
Rockwell’s conventional three-point play later in the third trimmed Winfield’s lead in half to 45-42, and the Cougars closed to within one when Sturm scored on a drive to the basket moments later.
Yet Winfield never showed signs of panic and responded by scoring the next 11 points to take a 56-44 lead. The surge featured four points from Lauren Hudson, a layup from Emily Hudson and five consecutive points from ZZ Russell, including a three-point play with 1:47 left in the frame.
The Generals took a 60-46 lead into the fourth and maintained a double-digit advantage over the final 8 minutes to win their fifth straight game.
“That run to end the third quarter was so important. We went into the fourth a little bit more confident and relaxed,” Spang said.
Lauren Hudson led four Winfield players in double figures with 21 points and also added a team-high 10 rebounds. Russell followed with 19 points, including 15 in the second half. Emily Hudson and Mara McGrew scored 10 apiece in the victory, while McGrew led all players with seven assists.
Sturm scored a game-high 23 points in defeat, while Madi Martin and Allison Rockwell were also in double figures with 15 and 14, respectively.
The Cougars committed 17 turnovers, while the Generals turned it over only five times.