Pippa Passes, KY: The Alice Lloyd College Lady Eagles opened the 2021-22 basketball season on October 27th by hosting the Union College Lady Bulldogs. The visitors got off to a torrid start, then withstood a furious rally from the Caney Creek ladies to eventually win, 93-84.
In the opening period, Union played inspired ball behind the play of sharpshooting forward Becky Hammonds. She would toss in 11 first-quarter points to spark her club to a 29-15 edge.
In the second quarter, the hosts would warm up on the offensive end and chip into the deficit. The senior duo of Haley Hall and Bailee Brainard combined to score 13 points. Still, Union led 46-38 at intermission behind 22 points from Hammonds.
As the third period began, ALC would attempt to work their way back even more. Trailing 52-46 with 4:20 remaining, the hometown ladies would roll off a nice 17-8 burst to close the stanza. Hall and Brainard produced half of the teams 22 points, and the hosts led 63-60.
Unfortunately, at that point, UC took charge. Over the final ten minutes, they would win the scoring war 36-24 and finally break the game open. This time, ALC had no answer.
For Alice Lloyd (0-1), Hall led the way with 25 points. She added 4 assists, and 3 steals and was a perfect 8-8 from the charity stripe. Fellow senior Hannah Kash drained 5-5 field goals, to finish with 13 points, while Brainard reached double figures with 11 points and swatted 3 shots.
Sophomore forward Madison Thompson grabbed 7 rebounds and added 8 points while freshman guard Kelly Jo Moore chipped in 8 points, 4 assists, and 3 steals.
The Caney Club finished shooting 39.7% (29-73) from the field and just 23.8% (5-21) from long range. They connected on 87.5% from the charity line (21-24), while adding 32 rebounds, 19 assists, and 12 steals.
UC (1-0) was paced by Hammonds with 36 points, including 19-24 from the charity stripe with 21 points. Her squad finished shooting 52% (26-50) from the field and 29.4% (5-17) from behind the arc. They prospered at the foul line, going 36-49 for 73.5%. They also added 44 rebounds, 11 assists, and 16 steals.
The Lady Eagles return to action on Saturday, October 31st, when they host the Bluefield College Lady Rams for a 2 pm tipoff.