Carson girls headed for playoffs after win over Fallon

BY DARRELL MOODY

Nevada Appeal Sports Writer

What a difference a year makes.

A year ago, Carson High's girls basketball team won just six games the entire season. Right now the Lady Senators are riding a six-game Sierra League win streak and have won 15 games.

Carson scored the game's first 12 points and went on to post a workmanlike 54-41 win over Fallon Tuesday night at Morse Burley Gym in its final home game of the regular season.

The playoff-bound Lady Senators, who got 13 points from Brandi Vega and 12 from Yvonne Hollett, improved to 9-4 heading into Friday's showdown at Douglas. Fallon dropped to 6-7 and out of the playoff picture.

"It is nice (considering what happened last year)," Carson coach Todd Ackerman said. "I know we really wanted to win this one.

"I thought our defensive intensity was good. Our offensive intensity wasn't good. They did get a lot of second shots because we didn't box out. I thought our defense really was pretty good the entire game."

Fallon coach Chelle Dalager agreed.

"They took away some of the things we like to do," Dalager said. "We hit outside shots the first time we played them. Tonight, they took those away."

Indeed. Fallon made just 13 of 44 field-goal attempts for 29 percent and turned the ball over 24 times.

Carson rolled to a 12-0 lead in the first four minutes of the game, as the Greenwave went eight straight possessions without a point.

Vega had a hand in nearly every score in that span, as she dropped off nice passes to Cassie Vondrak and Gina Bianchi for easy layups, and then scored on a 3-pointer and a free throw.

"Brandi did a good job distributing the ball," Ackerman said. "She did a good job throughout the whole game. We just need to slow down at times."

Vega left with 2:23 remaining in the opening quarter after picking up her second foul, and Fallon cut the deficit to 14-7 by the end of the quarter. Ackerman had Vega back on the floor at the start of the second quarter.

"I didn't think it was a gamble," said Ackerman, who admitted the offense got sluggish after her departure. "I just hoped that she didn't pick up a silly foul. Her fourth foul was a silly that could have cost us, but didn't."

Fallon cut the score to 20-14 with 5:09 left in the half, but Carson roared back, scoring eight of the next 10 for a 28-16 lead. Two of the baskets came on outside shots by Krista Mattice.

Fallon chopped the lead to 28-22 with a 6-0 run in the last 1:12 of the half, four of the points coming on free throws by Sara parsons, who led all scorers with 19 points.

Carson started the second half with an 8-1 run to build its lead to 36-23, as Hollett dropped in a 3-pointer, while Vega and Whitney Nash added baskets.

"We have a hard time scoring," Dalager said. "Offensively, we don't have enough experience. We don't know how to create or read."

Fallon briefly trimmed it to 36-28 late in the third quarter, but an 11-3 run at the outset of the fourth quarter gave Carson a 50-31 lead.

- Contact Darrell Moody at dmoody@nevadaappeal.com, or by calling 775 881-1281