Lady Rebels prevail behind swarming defense

By MATT KING\Daily Journal Sports Writer

PARK HILLS - The Central Lady Rebels struggled to find their range on Tuesday night, but prospered behind an effective pressing defense for a 41-28 home victory over Herculaneum.

Central (1-0) forced a whopping 41 turnovers while holding Herculaneum (0-1) to a single field goal in the first half. The Lady Blackcats converted just 9-of-23 free throw attempts.

Kristen Gunder was the early focal point of the Central offense, hitting three shots in the paint during an 8-0 scoring run to begin the contest. The senior forward finished with a game-high 13 points.

The Lady Rebels held an 11-4 lead after one quarter, despite suffering through a string of 13 consecutive missed shots from three-point range.

Michelle Mabery scored after ripping away a backcourt steal, and Sara Rieger slashed down the lane for a layup to extend the margin. Chelsea Pinson ended the long-range drought with a left-corner triple in the closing seconds of the first half, making the score 23-8.

Pinson chipped in eight points and matched Mabery with five steals for the Lady Rebels, who opened the third quarter with three straight baskets from Gunder.

Junior Allysha Storz and freshman Jamie Jerger slipped past the Central trap for back-to-back layups during a 9-0 rally that brought Herculaneum to within 29-17, but Rieger buried a long three to help the Lady Rebels close the stanza with a 7-0 spurt.

Jerger added a pull-up jumper and conventional three-point play down the stretch to post a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Storz pulled down 14 boards and scored eight points for the Lady Blackcats.

The physical contest left Central with an apparent ankle injury to sophomore guard Amber Kennedy, who left the game late in the third quarter after scoring four points.

Central will face Festus in the first round of the Potosi Tournament on Monday.

Herculaneum 4 4 9 11 - 28

Central 11 12 14 4 - 41

SCORING:

Herculaneum - Jerger 11, Storz 8, Story 4, Kaltenbach 4, Austin 1.

3-point FG - Story.

Central - Gunder 13, Pinson 8, Mabery 6, Rieger 6, Kennedy 4, Neff 2, Lawson 2.

3-point FG - Pinson, Rieger.