Lady Senators fall short against Miners

BY DARRELL MOODY

Nevada Appeal Sports Writer

RENO " If effort was all that mattered, the Carson girls basketball team would still be undefeated in Sierra League play.

The Lady Senators showed plenty of heart at both ends of the floor Saturday afternoon against favored Bishop Manogue, battling the Miners down to the wire before dropping a 60-54 decision at Bishop Manogue High School.

Manogue improved to 4-0 in the Sierra League while Carson dropped to 3-1, 9-9 overall.

"The girls did a nice job," Carson coach Todd Ackerman said. "We played hard. We matched their energy. They are a good team. (Katie) Gray is great. I think she touched the ball three times (in the last quarter) and she scored every time."

Gray scored seven of her 13 points in the final period, which enabled the Miners to wipe out Carson's 41-38 lead. The Senators had come all the way back from a 10-point deficit to take a three-point lead thanks to a 15-4 rally spanning the entire third quarter and 30 seconds of the fourth period.

Gray hit one of two free throws with 4:40 left to give the Miners a 45-43 edge. After a Carson turnover, she scored on a layup for a 47-43 lead. Ashley Armstrong made it a six-point bulge with two free throws. Armstrong finished with 22 points.

A bucket and two free throws by Carson senior Brandi Vega, who tied Armstrong for high-point honors with 22 points, made a short jump shot at the 3:32 mark and followed that up with two free throws nearly a minute later to close the gap to 49-47.

Gray scored on a layup and Vega responded with two free throws to keep it a two-point game, 51-49, with 1:29 left.

Gray hit a shot in the paint and Armstrong knocked down two free throws as Manogue extended its lead to 55-49 with 36.3 seconds left.

Carson junior Gina Bianchi made it 55-51, but Manogue's Nicole Aboumrad (18 points) and Taylor DeWees made two free throws apiece for a 58-51 advantage and to put the game away.

"I don't know what happened in the fourth quarter," Ackerman said. "We just didn't get back (on defense). They beat us downcourt a couple of times."

Carson turned the ball over four times in the final quarter, missed four free throws and went 5-for-12 from the floor.

While Ackerman was disappointed with the loss, he was ecstatic how his team played in the third quarter. It may have been the Senators' best eight minutes of the season on defense.

Trailing 34-26 at the half, Carson started in a 1-3-1 zone defense, which the Miners could never really solve. The Senators played some man-to-man defense and even went to a 3-2 in the second half.

"The girls like it (the 1-3-1)," Ackerman said. "They play hard in it. We tried to mix it up a little bit."

Carson senior Cassie Vondrak started the surge with two free throws, and following a Manogue turnover, Vega drained a jump shot to make it 34-30. A putback by Tiffany O'Day sliced the Miners' lead to 34-32.

Gray gave the Miners a 36-32 lead with 4:35 remaining in the third period, but the Miners turned the ball over on their next two possessions, and Carson made them pay. O'Day scored from close in and Vega made two free throws, tying the game at 36 with 2:33 left. Vega hit two more free throws for a 38-36 lead, the last one coming with 26.4 remaining. Carson turned the ball over and Armstrong scored on a buzzer-beater to tie the game at 38 after three.

"They did a good job of changing defenses," Manogue coach Richard Shaw said. "We had trouble adjusting to the 1-3-1. Once we figured it out, we were able to get the ball inside. I thought it was a good, hard-fought game on the part of both teams. Vega was awesome."

Vega was the only Carson player capable of penetrating the Manogue defense from the perimeter, and her scoring kept Carson in the hunt down the stretch.

NOTES: Blaike King had a strong first half for the Senators with eight points. She was a force on the offensive glass... Bre Anderson also made a couple of key baskets late in the second quarter .

- Contact Darrell Moody at dmoody@nevadaappeal.com or (775) 881-1281

JV GIRLS: CARSON 50, MANOGUE 30

Carson played their best overall game this season on Saturday in an easy win over the Miners.

Carson used a suffocating man-to-man defense, and half-court press to paralyze the Miners. The Miners only scored two points in the second quarter,

Eliza Matley led the way with 14 points, four steals and five rebounds. Tiana McAllister added 10 points and eight rebounds, while Jazmyn Stokes scored eight pioints and pulled down eight rebounds.

Matley also scored 11 points in a 37-34 win over Damonte Ranch on Friday.

Carson improved to 13-4 overall and 3-1 in league.