Cougars stumble in Carroll Classic
By Rex Overholser

The Lady Cougar’s hosted the Carroll Classic and welcomed the (6-3) West Central Lady Trojans to Memorial Gym. The game was one that the Cougars needed to win to get over the hump with their record at 3-3. The end result was a fatal 4th quarter and some ice cold 3- point shooting, hitting only 2 of 21 shots from the 3-point line.

The Cougars saw a 3-point play by Ashley Miller at 3:25 in the fourth quarter that enabled the hosts to gain a 33-30 advantage. However, the Cougars began to wear out as Coach Hanna had gone with a different plan for this game than he had used in their two previous wins.

The Lady Cougars had six players contributing in scoring, but depth was not displayed. The result saw the Trojans calmly hit their shots and free throws and come back to win the game 37-33. In the last three minutes, Carroll missed several shots and tried but did not have the energy left in the tank to sustain the win that they had in the bag.

Carroll controlled the game until the last minute. But the Trojans, who kept hanging around waiting for their opportunity, had their chance. Carroll did not exhibit the team ball that had been successful in the previous wins.

Ashley Miller led the Cougars with 13 points. Krystal Brazel scored 7 points in cold shooting and led in rebounds with 7.

Vs. Lowell

The nightcap of the Classic featured the Lady Cougars against the Lowell Red Devils. Lowell had made a familiar trip to the Cougar Den to play in this classic. They held off Rossville in the earlier contest, 41-36 to gain their fourth victory. Cougar ex-coach Patti McCormack brought a tall bunch of girls with her to play.

The Lady Cougars saved their 3-point shooting for this game with 8 treys. At one time, Carroll was ahead 15-8 with all of the Cougars’ points being scored by Brooke Yoder (9), Brazel (20), and Abby Reinke (3), all getting into the 3-point act. The game was close throughout with a slight lead to the Cougars at the end of the third quarter with a 30-26 edge. The turning point of the game came with 3.15 minutes left in the game. The visitors got to within 2 points at 35-33 and Coach McCormack got a technical foul. This was clearly the game’s turning point as Krystal Brazel hit 6 of 6 free throws from this point out and the game was a win for the Cougars.

Jaime McCarter played her best game of the season with 8 points.

The Lady Cougars came away with a 45-35 victory with five players contributing offensively. Lowell went home with a 4-6 record and Carroll improved to 4-4 with the win.

Carroll travels to Caston on Thursday for a 6 p.m. tip-off.