Lady Lions get back on winning track

Manila broke out of a recent slump with a 48-44 3A-3 conference victory Friday night over the Rivercrest Lady Colts. Kimberly Wise and Rebekah White pumped in 14 points apiece to lead the Manila scoring, but it was Colleen Kemp's seven fourth quarter free throws that sealed the deal as the Lady Lions evened their conference mark at 6-6 on the season. Manila stands 13-8 overall on the year.

The Lady Lions dropped a tough 50-45 decision Monday night to Tuckerman as Meagan Goza poured in 22 points to lead the Lady Bulldogs. Tuckerman jumped to a 20-10 first period lead as the sophomore pumped in 10 points to lead the way. The Lady Bulldogs stretched their advantage to 32-21 at the half despite three treys in the second quarter by Manila, two by Kemp and one from Tiffany Pentecost.

Kemp began the third quarter with back to back three pointers as the Lady Lions rallied and closed to within 39-38 by the end of the third period. Manila took a 45-44 lead on a 10-foot jumper from White with 2:09 left in the game, but Tuckerman scored the game's last six points to pull out the victory.

"We had a lot of trouble stopping Goza tonight," said Manila coach Jeff Priest. "She is just a big girl and she is hard to contain. We dug ourselves a big hole, but I was proud of the way we battled back and gave ourselves a chance to win the game. Colleen Kemp played her heart out and kept us in the game in the first half. I also thought Katie Donner played a good game tonight. Kristen Painter did a good job on the offensive boards. Rebekah White is still not 100 percent, which really hurts us. We just have to keep chipping away and get better. That's all we can do."

Claire Caldwell and Amanda McGhee added 10 points apiece for Tuckerman, who improved to 21-6 overall and 9-2 in league play. "I thought we played a real good overall game tonight, both offensively and defensively," said Tuckerman coach Debbie Skaggs. "This was a big road win for us. Manila has a very good team, but we were able to get the ball inside to Goza tonight and our guards took care of the ball, which was a big key. I was proud of our effort."

Kemp led Manila with 17 points while Painter added 12 more. White and Pentecost scored six points apiece while Donner and Wise added two points each. The Lady Lions hit 8-9 free throws and drilled six three pointers on the night.

In junior high action, Manila dropped a 42-29 decision to Tuckerman despite 15 points from eighth grader Courtney Craine. Kirsten Adcock scored four points, Taylor Bishop and Taylor Teague tallied three points apiece while Kristen Wise and Charlie Smith added two points each.

Manila lost to Rivercrest 50-24 in Friday night's junior high game.

Manila will return to action with a 3A-3 conference game against Corning at Manila Monday night. The Lady Lions will host Hoxie in another conference tilt Thursday night.