Sports
Waterford Holds Off Eastern In Close Contest
By: Meladi Brewer
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The Waterford Lady Wildcats (13-2, 13-0 TVC-Hocking) had their claws freshly sharpened and ready Monday as they took on the Eastern Lady Eagles (10-5, 10-3) at Eastern.
Waterford came out on top in this one, 53-44.
Waterford quickly took the lead over the Lady Eagles with a strong defense, gaining four steals within the first two minutes.
The Waterford defense continuously backed the Eagles into a corner and refused to let up and allow them the opportunity to score. Coach Jacob Parker felt the pressure, and called a timeout with three minutes left in the first quarter.
Following the time out, Alyson Bailey, came into the game for Eastern ready to rumble. She was able to move and gain possession of the ball, leading to a score. The atmosphere in the gym changed after that point. Eastern senior guard Jess Parker discussed how she felt during the game and how the community helped her and her teammates keep their heads in the game.
“We knew as soon as we came out we were flat. They were scoring. We were flat and were like, ok, something’s gotta happen. So our energy level got up, then the bench got into it, and then Jake got into it, and then you heard the crowd get into it, and that just fueled us more and more,” Jess Parker said.
With the energy from the crowd, the Lady Eagles pulled forward in the second quarter, and Jess Parker insured they stayed there as she shot a three with a minute and a half left, raising the score 25-19 in Eastern’s favor.
The third quarter was intense as the Lady Wildcats came out of the locker room hungry and on the prowl to take down Eastern. The prowl carried over into the fourth quarter as well, as it became a back and forth matchup with Waterford refusing to let up their game.
“It was a fun game, back and forth with a great team. They’re at the top of the league. I told them it looked like a boxing round … We had them on the ropes for a bit, they had us on the ropes, both teams responded. You couldn’t have asked for a better game going into tournament,” Jacob Parker said.
The second half of the game was a race for the lead score. Waterford took the race with full force and pulled forward in the fourth to win the game.
Waterford will continue their season success at River on Thursday.
Eastern will be traveling to South Gallia to take on the Lady Rebels the same night.