The Fort Mill Lady Jackets held off a late run by the Hunter Huss Huskies out of Gastonia, N.C. to get their third win in the early part of the season.
Fort Mill improved to 3-1 on the season with a 52-46 victory as they had three players in double figures.
“The girls are working hard,” said Fort Mill head coach Nathan Wruble. “We are getting tested early. We are making some young team mistakes. Our non-region matchups are a lot different than last year.”
The Lady Jackets opened the game on an 8-0 run by getting inside for high percentage shots. The quick start lasted only so long. Hunter Huss put together a 11-3 run to tie the game at 11.
The Huskies entered the second quarter up 15-13. Izzie Barber drained a 3-pointer for Fort Mill to start the second quarter and give them the lead.
The Jackets were able to create some space between them and the Huskies by drilling 3-pointers. Of the five shots they hit in the second quarter, three of them were 3-pointers as Fort Mill outpaced Hunter Huss 13-0 to go up 26-15 at the half.
The Huskies scored the first two baskets to open the second half. That opened the flood gates for them as they went on a 13-2 run to climb back into the game and tie it at 28. Fort Mill went 1-for-9 from the field during that time.
The Jackets’ Gigi Demauro came up big for them in the quarter scoring five consecutive points to give Fort Mill some space entering the fourth quarter up 36-33.
While the Jackets still struggled from the field, Fort Mill’s foul shooting allowed them to keep the lead. Fort Mill missed their first nine shots from the field in the fourth quarter, but went 4-of-6 from the line during the same stretch.
Barber scored five consecutive points for the Jackets to give them a nine-point lead with four minutes left in the game. The Jackets were able to sustain the lead despite Hunter Huss making a run in the final minutes. Fort Mill shot 17 free throws in the fourth quarter, hitting nine of them. For the game, the Jackets were 14-for-25 at the charity stripe.
Barber led with 13 points for Fort Mill, while Kate Marker and Saylor Heberling each had 11 points as well.
The Fort Mill boys’ varsity basketball team did not play on Thursday.
Dec. 5 Roundup
The Nation Ford boys’ basketball team fell to Charlotte Catholic 77-48 on the road to drop to 1-1 on the season.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
