Lady Raiders Rebound, Beat George Mason
A night after losing to the Edison Eagles, who beat Chantilly 57-44 to
win the Championship, Loudoun County rebounded with a 71-66 win over the
George Mason Mustangs.
This contest featured two defending State Champions from last season and
County quickly jumped out to a fast pace by scoring 26 first quarter
points as they led the Mustangs 26-16. They increased their lead going
into halftime by 15 as the score was 44-29.
However, County found itself in foul trouble as senior standouts Alissa
Kain and Kendra Holmes each picked up their fourth fouls early in the
third quarter and County had to fall back from its pressure defense.
George Mason was able to close the gap to 59-50 heading into the final
frame.
Then, at the 7:25 mark, Holmes was whistled for her fifth foul and was
relegated to the bench. Holmes would finish the contest with eight
points, eight rebounds, and five steals as she only played a total of
five minutes in the second half.
Kain, who finished with 15 points and five rebounds, would also foul out
in the fourth quarter at around the four minute mark. At this point,
County struggled to rebound the ball and set its offense and Mason would
close the gap to 61-60 with just under 2 minutes to play.
However, Alex Lapple would hit a big three to extend the lead to 64-60.
After Mason converted on a three point play, Brittany Batts would calmly
step to the line and hit both free throws to extend the lead to 66-63.
After another stop on the defensive side of the ball, County's Jenna
Strange would find Eric Linnemann streaking down the floor and Linnemann
would score and convert the free throw as she was fouled on the play.
County now led 69-63. Mason then hit another three pointer with 3.1
seconds left to make the score 69-66. Strange would again find
Linnemann on a run-out as Linnemann converted the lay-up with no time
left for the final score of 71-66.
Strange was active from the beginning of the contest as she scored 13
points in the contest to go along with 10 rebounds.
Linnemann would also finish in double figures with 10 points as she
scored those five crucial points in the closing seconds.
Lapple was big as she stepped up in the contest and finished with five
points and five assists. Amanda Grimsley also had two key rebounds in
the final 30 seconds to help County hold its lead.
Finally, junior shooting guard Brittany Batts would tally a game high 20
points. Batts was recognized as one of the top players in the Pohanka
Chantilly Holiday Classic as she was named to the All-Tournament Team.
Batts would finish with 65 points in the three game contests for an
average of 21.7 per game. She also hit on 15 of 16 free throw attempts
for an average of 94%.
County's overall record stands at 7-2 as they head into the new year.
Loudoun County 71, George Mason 66
