Lady Raiders run past Arcadia Valley

By MATT KING
Daily Journal Sports Writer

POTOSI — The fourth-seeded North County girls basketball team pressured youthful Arcadia Valley into 36 turnovers on Monday night, and collected a 69-24 victory in the opening round at the Potosi Tournament.

Senior guard Kassi Hovis recorded game highs with 16 points and six steals to pace North County (2-0), which will meet top-seeded St. James in the semifinal round on Thursday.

Freshman Courtney Coulter and sophomore Rilea Huff each contributed 13 points to the win while combining for seven three-point baskets. Jamie Bullock chipped in nine points and six rebounds.

The Lady Raiders finished 15-of-18 overall from the line and built a 32-16 advantage by halftime. Bullock scored three consecutive field goals and Hovis converted a three-point play during a 16-0 spurt to begin the third quarter.

Huff closed the period with her second buzzer-beating shot of the night from well beyond the arc, and Coulter opened the final stanza with her fourth triple to make it 61-20.

Arcadia Valley (0-1) battled its opponent closely through the opening 10 minutes, and trailed just 16-12 when Nikki Bone made a transition layup early in the second quarter.

Carley Barton was a perfect 6-for-6 at the charity stripe to lead the Lady Tigers in scoring. Brittany Asher pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds.

Arcadia Valley  10   6   4   4 - 24

North County  16  16  26  11 - 69

SCORING:

Arcadia Valley - Barton 6, Clark 4, Mason 4, Thurman 3, Asher 3, Bone 2, R Reynolds 2. 3-point FG - Asher, Thurman.

North County - Hovis 16, Huff 13, Coulter 13, Bullock 9, Parmley 5, Bess 5, Bonney 3, Collins 3, Gibson 2. 3-point FG - Coulter 4, Huff 3, Hovis, Bess, Bonney.

St. James 72, Potosi 25

POTOSI — Senior Brittany Herode dominated the paint and scored 18 of her game-high 20 points in the first half on Monday, as St. James powered past tournament host Potosi 72-25 in the season opener for both squads.

St. James (1-0) began the contest with a 13-1 scoring run, and increased the margin to 41-9 at intermission while committing only six turnovers during the game.

Sophomore Rachel Connell netted 17 points and Ashley Hoener tallied 14 for the top-seeded Lady Tigers, who led 62-14 through three periods.

Potosi (0-1) posted an 11-10 scoring edge during a fourth quarter that was played under a running clock. Kelsey Fitzwater secured eight rebounds and matched Madison Smith with six points each to lead the Lady Trojans.

Potosi   5   4   5  11 - 25

St. James  22  19  21  10 - 72

SCORING:

Potosi - Fitzwater 6, Smith 6, Portell 5, Thompson 4, Harbison 3, Duncan 1. 3-point FG - Portell, Harbison.

St. James - Herode 20, Connell 17, Hoener 14, Marshall 5, Bowen 4, Hauck 4, Stowers 4, Hughes 2, Harris 2. 3-point FG - Connell, Hoener.