Lady Cardinals struggle with top-ranked Jefferson

By MATT KING
Daily Journal Sports Writer

PARK HILLS — The Mineral Area College women’s basketball team hosted the top-ranked team in the nation on Wednesday night, but found the stout Jefferson defense extremely difficult to crack.

All-American sophomores Danielle Adams and LaToya Johnson each showed stretches of dominant play, as the unbeaten Lady Vikings rolled to a 71-52 region win at the Bob Sechrest Fieldhouse.

Adams utilized her size and strength inside to post 23 points and eight rebounds, while the explosive Johnson finished with 21 points and five steals in the victory. Freshman guard Porsha Porter chipped in 13 points.

Jefferson (18-0) aggressively stifled the Mineral Area perimeter attack and forced 24 turnovers. The Lady Vikings would not have their lead threatened after two transition three-pointers from Denae Beavers sparked a 15-4 start.

Mineral Area (10-7) held Jefferson more than 20 points below its scoring average, and maintained a manageable deficit by earning several trips to the charity stripe. The Lady Cardinals made 19-of-26 free throws overall.

Sherry Glennie lifted MAC with 12 points and six rebounds off the bench, including an 8-for-9 effort from the line. Her strong work on the glass yielded second-chance points on back-to-back possessions in the first half.

A conventional three-point play from Glennie made the score 27-17, but Adams quickly answered with a turning jumper despite being draped by a defender. A slashing layup by Porter increased the halftime margin to 37-23.

Gretchen Gaskin netted 13 points to lead the Lady Cardinals, and attacked the lane for two early layups in the second half, as the host club eventually pulled to within 50-38.

But Johnson was too versatile for Mineral Area to handle down the stretch. After finishing an individual dribbling clinic with an easy layup, Johnson buried consecutive triples around high screens for a 64-41 Jefferson lead.

Mineral Area was handed another setback with nearly 10 minutes remaining, as sophomore center Caitlin Shadbolt left the action with a left shoulder injury. Shadbolt had nine points and did not return to action.

The Lady Cardinals will host rival Three Rivers at 5 p.m. on Saturday with the men’s game to follow.

Jefferson  37  34 - 71

Mineral Area  23  29 - 52

SCORING:

Jefferson - Adams 23, Johnson 21, Porter 13, Beavers 6, Wiggins 4, Voynova 2, S Williams 2. 3-point FG - Johnson 3, Beavers 2.

Mineral Area - Gaskin 13, Glennie 12, Shadbolt 9, Milfeld 7, Bell 6, McQuin 4, Eagan 1. 3-point FG - Milfeld.