Identities were re-established and introductions were made all around as the Lady Cougar basketball team used dominating first and fourth quarters to dismantle the Christiansburg Blue Demons 76-27 Tuesday in Christiansburg.
“Man, that was a pretty good start,” Lady Cougar Head Coach Scott Ratcliff said. “I think our girls came in focused tonight and set the tempo right off the bat. Closing the game out by not allowing any points in the fourth quarter was impressive too. It was good to see. We still made some mistakes, but they didn’t do too bad tonight. We’ve got a week to get some good work in during practice and let a few bumps and bruises heal before we get a rematch with Patrick Henry.”
The score was tied at 2-2 early in the first quarter, but then the Lady Cougars exploded. Keslyn Secrist hit a three-pointer. Then Paige Huff hit a three. Then Tori Vest added a three, followed by a Jaden Lawson three-pointer. Then Huff hit from behind the line again. A few layups and jumpers were added into the mix with another three-pointer by Tori Vest and in the blink of an eye, the Lady Cougars led 31-2 and the first quarter was over.
“It looked like a buzzsaw,” Coach Ratcliff said. “I’m not sure I’ve seen them that focused in a while. I’m not sure if it was the pregame meal or what, but they were really lighting it up.”
The second quarter started with another three-pointer by Secrist, but Christiansburg was able to start getting the ball down the court as the Lady Cougars brought in several backups. That didn’t stop them from outscoring the Blue Demons 16-13 in the quarter to lead 47-15 heading into the halftime break.
There was more of the same in the third quarter. Huff added two more three-pointers, giving her four for the game. Pulaski County outpaced the Blue Demons 15-12 to increase their lead to 62-27 heading into the final quarter. With the mercy rule in effect and a running clock, the Lady Cougars still put up 14 points while holding Christiansburg scoreless for the 76-27 final.
Secrist finished the game with a team and game-high 19 points. Huff ended the night with 17 points. Tori Vest and Hannah Keefer added 10 points each. Kenzlee Jones scored six points. Jaden Lawson and Andi Ratcliff added five points each. Morgan Vest was good for four points.
The Lady Cougars hit 10 three-pointers in the contest and were eight-of-10 from the free-throw line. With the win, the Lady Cougars move to 13-3 on the season.
The JV Lady Cougars were able to get back to their winning ways in the early game, bringing home a 36-29 victory to move their record to 13-1 on the season.
After an 8-8 first quarter, the Lady Cougars were held to just two points in the second quarter while the Blue Demons added four to their total, leaving it at 12-10 at halftime. Pulaski County hit just one of 19 shot attempts in the second quarter.
Things picked up in the second half, with the Lady Cougars winning the third quarter 10-6 and the fourth quarter 16-11 to earn the win.
Seven Lady Cougars put points on the board. Emma Ritter led the way with 13 points. Taylor Goble and Sara Ritter added six points each. Morgan Price and Caroline Bishop scored four points each. Sophia Hanson added three points and Ellie MacDonald scored two.
“Good to get a win, but we still have plenty we need to work on,” Ratcliff said. “Christiansburg came into the game with 11 wins. We’re not bad, but we can’t afford to take anyone for granted. We need to come into every game the way we came into this one. If we do that, I feel like we can play with just about anybody. If we come out flat, we’ll find ourselves in trouble. Those 13 wins have put a target on our backs and we know it. We’re going to get every team’s best shot every night. This is where we want to be, now we just need to earn it every night.”
The Lady Cougars will be back in action Tuesday, January 24, when they host the Patrick Henry Patriots. JV action begins at 5:30 p.m. followed by the varsity contest at 7 p.m.