By Jason King
Leader sportswriter
Scoring by committee lifted the Harding Academy Lady Wildcats to a 50-24 victory over Little Rock Episcopal in the consolation round of the Beebe Holiday Classic at Badger Sports Arena on Wednesday.
Junior guard Lynley Crowell scored 10 of her game-high 13 points in the first quarter before drawing extra attention from the Episcopal defense.
That gave opportunities to senior point guard Molly Koch, who chipped in with 11 points, including her only three-pointer with 4:03 left in the third quarter to give Harding Academy (4-7) a 36-13 lead.
“We were still not as good offensively as we would like to be,” Harding Academy coach Rusty Garner said.
“But our better defense allowed us some breathing room, let us relax a little bit. We wanted to make that a focus today, and they did a good job, I thought.”
Harding Academy held Episcopal to just two points in the second quarter while piling on 10 of its own for a 29-9 halftime lead. Harding Academy continued to spread the ball and the scoring around after halftime.
Several Harding Academy players contributed in the second half.
Senior post player Hannah Matthews scored a pair of inside baskets in the third quarter as part of her six-point performance, while Kristen Lester went 3 for 3 at the free-throw line and made two field goals for seven points.
Tory Mote went 4 for 4 at the free-throw line in the first quarter and added a basket for her six points.
“We feel like we have four guards who can shoot it — four guards who can score on any night,” Garner said. “Here lately, Lynley has really been shooting the basketball well. She had an eight, three-point game a couple of games ago.
“When people get attention, it opens things up. There’s not a giant number on the board, but some decent numbers scattered throughout.”
Taylor Barton, Episcopal’s only consistent scoring threat, tried to get her team back in the game in the third quarter, but despite her effort, which included a three-pointer and two free throws, Harding Academy outscored Episcopal 14-9 in the quarter.
Barton led Episcopal with 12 points.
Harding Academy controlled the pace on the floor mostly through a halfcourt press that generated its share of turnovers, but more often caused panic in Episcopal that resulted in forced passes and lobbed shots.
McKenzie Miller helped Harding Academy control the inside with several defensive rebounds that limited Episcopal’s second-chance shots.
Harding Academy lost to Clarksville in the first round Tuesday. The victory over Episcopal put it in the fifth-place game against Lonoke on Thursday.
Harding Academy is considerably smaller than in years past and has had mixed results early, but Garner said the years of work together through junior high to the varsity level have helped the players stay competitive through off-court difficulties.
“We’re still trying to figure it out,” Garner said.
“We’ve had some — we’ll call it adversity — family deaths and illnesses, other things going on around us. We’ve already played four games where we were missing a starter or two starters. What we already know is that we’ve got a group of kids who are going to work hard and work well together.
“We’ve got to shoot it well to succeed. We’re not very big, and we’ve got to have shots fall to be in ballgames.”
