The Alice Lloyd Lady Eagles, under the guidance of Coach John Mills, journeyed to Berea over the weekend to participate in the Berea Classic. Following are recaps of each matchup.
November 18
ALC 58
Milligan Buffaloes 68
The Lady Eagles opened up action on Friday against Milligan College. ALC is currently playing without senior center Nikki Durman who suffered an attack of appendicitis and is out indefinitely. They were also playing without starting guard Taylor Hott who was forced to miss both games this weekend due to a family emergency. In addition, leading scorer Ariel Nickell was playing with a leg injury and was regulated to only spot minutes.
In her absence, Coach Mills went to his bench and called on freshman forward Hayley Smith. The Corbin native provided a huge spark as she knocked in several nice buckets. When the buzzer sounded at intermission, the Buffaloes led 34-28.
In the second half, the game was nip and tuck until the final horn. ALC senior Gemma Gray kept her team close until the last second, but Milligan made just enough plays to maintain their lead.
For Alice Lloyd, Smith showed fine potential as she recorded a double-double with game highs of 18 points and 10 rebounds. Gray also played well, dropping in 16 points.
For Milligan (2-4) Alisha Mainer led the way with 16.
The Eagles kept the game close despite shooting only 30% from the field. Milligan connected on 37%.
November 19
ALC 65
Union Bulldogs 83
Due to an adjustment in the schedule, the second day of the Berea Classic saw ALC pitted against Union for the third time in seven days.
In the first half, backed by the return of Ariel Nickell, the Eagles shot well and were tied with 4:00 remaining. The Bulldogs then closed the half on a run to take a 43-31 lead into the locker room.
In the second half, Union slowly increased their lead. The Eagles battled until the very end, but the Bulldogs pulled out the win.
For ALC (0-8), Nickell played a fine game as the sophomore led all scorers with 29 points. She connected on 13-21 from the field and 3-5 free throws. She also pulled down a team–high 9 rebounds. Also finishing in double figures was Gemma Gray with 11.
For UC (4-1), Lindsey Walters tossed in 20 points and had a game–high 12 rebounds.
For the game, the Lady Eagles shot well, hitting 50% from the field compared to Milligan’s 46%. One difference in the game was at the free throw line where Milligan outscored ALC 15-7, but the Eagles did not shoot a free throw for the first thirty-two minutes of the game.