On a one day turn around, after playing in Medford Thursday night, the 4-0 Lady Bruins hosted the 2-2 Douglas Lady Trojans, who were coming off a loss Thursday evening against Sutherlin.
A confident Lady Trojan team walked on the court and challenged the Lady Bruins at their own game early, attempting to out pace the Lady Bruins, collect early fouls and establish points in the paint.
The Lady Bruins struggled to gain any consistent play with the hand checking and physical play, getting their only points in the first from a senior #2 Tilly Peters 3-pointer and two free throws from Sierra Fitzhugh and Ashlyn Schofield.
With the Lady Trojans leading 5-15 starting the 2nd period, the Lady Bruins attempted to shut down the lane, to eliminate lay-ups and to rebound. Trailing early energized the Lady Bruin defense, and held Douglas to just 11 points.
The Lady Bruins had six players on the scoreboard in the 2nd, putting up 21 points with senior Lexi Schofield #1 leading the way hitting a basket, a 3 pointer and 2 of 3 from the foul line for 7 of the Lady Bruins points in the period. Sophomore Ashlyn Schofield #44 also hit for 5 points in the period hitting two shots and a freethrow, and senior Shelby Jirsa #5 hit from behind the arc for a three to tie the game at 26 at the half.
Handling the physical inside play and finding their offense in the second, the Lady Bruins continued to stand their ground, denying easy baskets and establishing position to rebound and then running on possession changes. Senior #00 Sierra Fitzhugh found her groove in the chaos, hitting two big 3 pointers and two jumpers for 10 points. Junior Faith Burton #4 extended the Lady Bruin lead hitting two 3 pointers as the Lady Bruins held Douglas to 13 points in the 3rd, while putting up 22 points.
Holding on to a 9 point lead going into the final period, the Lady Bruin defense stiffened, and the Douglas team looking at foul trouble continued to try and push the ball inside, but disciplined defensive positioning held off the Lady Trojan push, allowing only three Douglas players to score in the period.
The Lady Bruins Sierra Fitzhugh continued her onslaught, working the offensive and defensive boards and racking up another 8 points, driving in the paint, and then stepping out for two more 3 pointers to power the Lady Bruins to a 64-49 win with 22 points on the night including four 3 pointers.
“That was the first time we’ve really be tested physically this year. They were a big, strong, physical team and really took it to us in the first quarter.” coach Schofield said after the game. “After that rough opening quarter, I was really pleased with how our kids responded. We were able to slow them down a bit offensively and getting stops helped keep us going until we got some shots to fall for us. The girls did a great job staying focused on their own game and controlling the things we can control.”
The Lady Bruins will be at home again next Tuesday at 5:30pm, hosting a 3-0 Sutherlin Lady Bulldog team that just defeated Douglas at Douglas 67-49 last Thursday.
