By RAY BENTON
Leader sports editor
Cabot got an easy sweep over Catholic and Mount Saint Mary Academy on Tuesday at Panther Arena. The Lady Panthers got their second conference win of the season, beating the Belles 68-47. The boys struggled a bit more than their first matchup with the Rockets. That nonconference matchup on Dec. 7 was against a shorthanded Catholic squad and ended 61-26. On Tuesday, the Panthers still won handily, 51-33.
It appeared the boys would run away early again, opening the game with a 10-2 run, and leading 21-9 near the end of the opening quarter. But Catholic closed the first period with a 5-0 run, and then outscored the Panthers 12-11 in the second quarter.
After the fast start, Cabot’s lead at halftime was only 21-14.
The Panthers led 27-19 about halfway through the third period, when Matt Stanley sparked a 9-0 run and gave the home team some breathing room.
It started with Stanley making 1 of 2 foul shots. After a defensive stop, the 6-foot-8 post player stepped out and hit a 3-pointer for a 31-19 Cabot lead that forced a Catholic timeout.
Another fruitless possession by the Rockets turned into another basket by Stanley, and Cabot (15-3, 5-2) took a 33-19 lead into the fourth quarter. Stanley then scored and was fouled, and completed the 3-point play for a 36-19 lead just seconds into the fourth.
Catholic finally broke the scoring drought, but Cabot answered with five-straight, making it a 15-2 run and giving the Panthers a 41-21 lead with five minutes left in the game.
Stanley led all scorers and rebounders with 16 points and eight boards.
Gilbertson added 13 for the Panthers and point guard Bobby Joe Duncan scored 10 and dished out four assists.
The Lady Panthers (13-7, 2-5) also got out to a good start, offensively. They scored 22 points in the first quarter, but that dropped to just 10 in the second and the lead at halftime was just eight points at 32-24.
Cabot then took control in the third, outscoring MSM 21-11 for a 53-35 lead going into the final period.
Holly Allen had a phenomenal game, hitting 7 of 8 3-point attempts and finishing with 25 points. Josie VanOss finished with 16 points, and Camryn Harmon scored 10 and dished out six assists.
Cabot plays at Catholic (0-16, 0-7) and MSM (8-12, 2-5) on Friday after Leader deadlines. Look for details of those games in Wednesday’s edition of The Leader.
The Panthers and Lady Panthers will host Fort Smith Southside on Tuesday.
