Lilian Bouza drives the ball up the court in a game against Douglas on Tuesday.
MINDEN — A shorthanded Carson High girls basketball team ran into red-hot Douglas on Tuesday night.
And even though the Tigers sprinted to an early lead on their way to a 65-40 Sierra League victory at Randy Green Court, Carson coach Melissa Larsen was encouraged by the effort she saw from the Senators.
“We only had seven, but I thought my girls played really hard tonight,” Larsen said. “We were down 23-5 after one quarter and we didn’t stop playing. We came out and started attacking the basket in the third quarter, we were just too far behind at that point.”
Douglas coach Werner Christen can relate to the disadvantages of playing with a short roster after the Tigers fought through adversity in December.
“I want to tip my hat to that bunch and their coaching staff,” Christen said of the Senators. “They could have given up, but those kids fought back and made us play hard.
“We’ve been there as far as injuries and illness. Getting everyone healthy has been key for us.”
Ashlynn Campbell buried a pair of 3-pointers and Taylynn Kizer added another shot from beyond the arc to spark a 13-2 surge in the opening five minutes to help Douglas (6-5 league, 10-12 overall) extend its win streak to four games and solidified its hold on second-place in the league.
Among the key players missing for Carson (3-8, 8-12) were Haley Garver (concussion), Lauren Lemburg (illness) and Bella Kordonowy (knee). The extent of Kordonowy’s injury is still uncertain, according to Larsen, but could keep her out for the rest of this season.
Twelve players scored for Douglas, led by Campbell and Kizer with 11 each. Hannah Carr also scored 10 for the Tigers.
“They have a really good team,” Larsen said of the Tigers. “They have a lot of players who can move the ball, they attack the basket well and they shoot the ball well.”
Lily Bouza led all scorers with 18 points for Carson. The sophomore scored eight of those points during a three-minute stretch in the second quarter when the Senators rallied from a 30-7 deficit. Bouza also sank a pair of 3-pointers in the fourth quarter.
“Lily played hard. She played both sides of the ball,” Larsen said.
Abigail Golik also scored eight points and Annika Wick seven for the Senators.
The second-round of the Sierra League schedule begins on Friday when Douglas visits first-place Bishop Manogue while Carson hosts Galena.
“This was a nice win for us, a good team win,” Christen said. “And the kids are looking forward to Friday night.”