The Greenwood Lady Bulldogs open 5A West conference play on Tuesday against Van Buren at H.B. Stewart Arena, and will do so on the heels of winning three of their last four non-conference games over the past ten days. Three of those games were part of tournament play in Little Rock and two of the wins came in back-to-back contests against Class 6A Bryant.
The GHS ladies now stand at 7-8 overall on the season, with most of their losses coming against 6A schools, part of one of the most challenging schedules faced by any girls team in the state. Greenwood’s recent annual dominance of the league will be further tested by a conference schedule featuring stiff competition from 5A West newcomer Farmington and a greatly improved Mountain Home squad, among others like Van Buren, Alma, Harrison, Russellville, and Siloam Springs.
North Little Rock
Five days before Christmas the Lady Bulldogs traveled to Central Arkansas to take on the Lady Wildcats of Little Rock Central, a traditional 6A basketball power, and the Greenwood girls kept it close before losing, 57-53. The visitors actually led by a point going into the final period, 43-42. The Lady Bulldogs managed to score in double digits in all four periods, netting 15, 11, 17, and 10 points, respectively. The NLR girls led 16-15 after one period but Greenwood led 26-25 at the half.
The Lady Wildcats shot 37% for the game compared to 32% for the Lady Bulldogs. But Greenwood was more accurate from beyond the three-point line (8 of 22) and the free throw line (13 of 15). But the home team dominated the boards with 50 total rebounds to just 22 for the visitors. The GHS ladies had 18 steals to only five by their opponents allowing Greenwood to win the turnover battle. Still, the Lady Wildcats controlled the lane, scoring 34 points in the paint to just 10 for the visitors.
Greenwood’s Kylah Pearcy and Izzy Smith led the way offensively, the only GHS players to reach double figures in scoring. Pearcy netted 18 points and Smith 13. Pearcy didn’t shoot that well from the floor but scored 10 points at the charity stripe. She also grabbed six rebounds, had eight assists, and five steals. Smith had six steals. Pate Jones contributed seven points, Journey Clements six points, Ashlin Rose five, and Piper Pitts four points.
Rogers High School
A week later, two days after Christmas, Head Coach Ryan Casalman and assistant coach Ryan Lensing returned with their players to the capital city to open play in the Little Rock Christian Classic. They started their three-day tournament run by taking down the Rogers Lady Mounties by 37 points, winning 69-32. The GHS defense limited their opponents to single digit points through the first three quarters, leading 19-7 after one period and 39-15 at the intermission. Greenwood also dominated the third quarter, 17-4, before pulling most of the starters, allowing Rogers to battle to a 13-13 draw in the fourth period.
The Lady Bulldogs bested the Rogers’ girls in shooting, 40% to 30%. Among those shots, Greenwood hit 10 treys in 31 attempts plus nine of their 13 shots from the free throw line. The GHS ladies outscored their opponents in the paint, 28 to 10 and had an incredible 18-steal difference in takeaways, 23 to five. Rogers led in rebounds with 32 while Greenwood had 26. The Lady Mounties also turned the ball over 33 times while the Lady Bulldogs had 11 total turnovers.
Individually, Izzy Smith led the way with 21 points on a 9-for-17 shooting performance, while Kylah Pearcy had 16 points, including 5-of-6 from the free throw line, plus six boards, three assists, and six steals. Journey Clements added nine points, four rebounds and three steals. Hallie Fox came off the bench to net eight points and had three steals. Starter Piper Pitts contributed six points, three rebounds, and three steals. Pate Jones also had six points with five assists and five steals. Reserve Eva Booth added three points.
Little Rock Christian
The next day the GHS girls faced the host Little Rock Christian Lady Warriors, losing their round two contest, 67-61. The game was an offensive affair throughout, with both teams netting double digits in scoring in each quarter. Greenwood trailed 14-11 after one period and 36-31 at the break. The visitors then had a strong third stanza, outscoring the home team 18-13 to tie the score at 49-all heading into the last eight minutes.
Both squads shot the ball well, above 40%. The Lady Bulldogs drained 44% of their shots while the Lady Warriors hit 41% of their offerings. Both teams hit seven three-pointers while the host team outscored the visitors 12-to-4 from the free throw line. Both scored 32 points in the paint while the LRC girls won the battle of the boards, grabbing 39 rebounds to 23 for Greenwood. The GHS ladies had 15 steals to nine for their foes and both teams were turnover prone, combining for 39 lost possessions in the contest, 18 for Greenwood and 21 for the Lady Warriors.
Once again, Izzy Smith and Kylah Pearcy accounted for most of Greenwood’s points. Smith hit 10 of her 17 shots, including a trio of three-pointers for 23 points. She also had five assists and five steals. Pearcy drained 10 of her 18 shots from the floor, all two-pointers, and added a pair of free throws for 22 points. She also had eight rebounds, seven assists, and six steals. Journey Clements added nine points, Pate Jones three points, while Ashlin Rose and Keelie Dolan had two points each.
Bryant High School
Last Monday the Lady Bulldogs returned for their third and final game in the LRC Classic, easily defeating the Lady Hornets of Bryant High School, 69-33. The GHS girls jumped out to a double-digit lead after one period, doubling their opponents’ score, 30-15, and they never looked back. Greenwood led 40-23 at the half and 56-28 going into the final period of play.
The GHS offense posted a 45% shooting percentage for the game, including over 53% from two-point range and nearly 36% from beyond the arc. The Lady Bulldogs hit 10 of 28 three-pointers taken and 17 of 32 shots inside the arc. They also hit five of their seven free throw attempts and scored 28 points off as many Bryant turnovers. Greenwood had 16 steals among those turnovers and scored 23 points in transition. Bryant held a slight advantage in rebounds, 37 to 31.
Six GHS players recorded points in the contest, led by Izzy Smith’s 28, plus three rebounds, six deflections, and four steals. Kylah Peary was next with 14 points, six rebounds, seven assists, five deflections, and two steals. Piper Pitts added 12 points on four three-pointers, plus three boards. Journey Clements came off the bench to score nine points, all on three-pointers. Pate Jones contributed four points and Ashlin Rose had two points.
This past Friday the same two teams met in the friendly confines of Greenwood’s H.B. Stewart Arena. But if the Lady Hornets harbored any thoughts of revenge, those hopes were quickly crushed as the Lady Bulldogs opened with another big first quarter. The victory improved the Lady Bulldogs’ season record to a very respectable one game below .500 at 7-8, especially considering the tough schedule they’ve faced in preparation for conference play beginning next week.
The GHS girls scored the first 11 points of the game on their way to a 26-11 lead after one period. But Coach Casalman pulled starters Ashlin Rose and Kylah Pearcy in the second quarter, each with two early fouls, allowing the Bryant girls to rally and close their halftime deficit to 35-28. Piper Pitts scored the home team’s final points of the half on a driving layup.
But Greenwood righted the ship in the third period, outscoring the visitors, 21-10, to go back up by double digits, 56-38. Kylah Pearcy dropped a soft touch three-pointer near the end of the period, then grabbed a rebound and threw a long pass to Izzy Smith for a layup to end the quarter. The two squads combined for 23 points in the final stanza for the 68-49 final.
The Greenwood ladies hit 43% of their shots, including nearly 60% of their two-point attempts and six of 28 three-point tries. They were six of eight at the free throw line and scored 39 points off Bryant turnovers, with 15 steals and 19 deflections, helping to create 29 total turnovers by the opposition. The Lady Bulldogs also scored 40 points in the paint while Bryant outrebounded the home team, 33 to 27.