Pippa Passes, KY: The Alice Lloyd College Lady Eagles came through with some big shots in the second half and held on to defeat the Milligan College Lady Buffaloes 76-73. The matchup was played at the Perry Campus Center on “Coach J” court Tuesday, November 2nd.
In the opening period, senior center Alexandria Clifton provided the bulk of the ALC offense with 8 points, but Milligan would come out hot. This would enable MC to sprint ahead 25-15 after ten minutes of play.
In the second quarter, senior guard Haley Hall would heat up with 7 points as ALC took the stanza. Regardless, the Tennessee club would hold a 42-34 lead at intermission.
As the third period began, ALC would tighten up on the defensive end and hold Milligan to 14 points. On offense, Hall would pump in 11 big points of her own and lift the Caney Creek club to a 57-56 advantage entering the final quarter.
In the final ten minutes, leading 60-58, the Pippa Passes posse would roll out a 12-4 burst to sprint ahead 72-62 with just 4:09 remaining. The hosts appeared home-free.
However, Milligan refused to fold and chipped into the deficit. The visitors would actually get within a single point, but ALC hit some big free throws to ice the win for Coach John Mills.
For the victors (2-1), four players would reach double-figures. They were led on the night by Hall, who would lead all scorers with 22 points. She drained 3-7 bombs and added 3 steals. Fellow classmate Ali May joined the double-digit club with 14 points, which was the same amount scored by Clifton, who also grabbed added 7 rebounds.
Senior guard Hanna Kash added 10 points and a game-high 5 assists, while sophomore forward Madison Thompson hauled down a game-high 10 rebounds. Senior center Bailee Brainard had 2 blocks.
The Caney Club finished shooting 39.7% (25-63) from the field and 35.7% (5-14) from long range. They connected on 75% from the charity line (21-28), while adding 43 rebounds, 14 assists, 8 steals, and 7 blocks.
MC (0-3) was paced by Jaycie Jenkins with 16 points. Her squad finished shooting 34.7% (25-72) from the field and 30% (6-30) from behind the arc. From the foul line, they finished 17-27 for 63%. They also added 51 rebounds, 15 assists, 6 steals, and 3 blocks.
The Lady Eagles return to action on Friday, November 5th, when they play the host team in the University of the Cumberlands classic in a 7 pm tipoff. They then play Coastal Georgia in the same event the following day.