The Greenwood Lady Bulldogs traveled to Conway last week for three games in tournament play, winning two of three and improving their overall season mark to 5-3. A lackluster offensive performance in game one on Thursday against Central Arkansas Christian (CAC) ended with a 43-40 loss.
The GHS girls scored just 16 points in the first half and trailed 27-16 at the break. They managed to reach double figures in each of the last two periods, scoring 13 and 11 points, respectively, even taking a brief lead early in the fourth quarter, before falling by three points.
"It took us a while to get adjusted in that game," said Head Coach Clay Reeves. "[CAC] had one outstanding player – one of the top [players] in the nation, and it took us a half to get used to her quickness and the things that she did. She had 23 [points] in the first half. But we got better at it in the second half and were able to slow [her] down.
"We didn't play very aggressively in the first three quarters, and finally we did in the fourth quarter and got the lead. [We] just weren't able to hang on to it. We had a great chance to win that game, and probably should have, but that's just part of the learning process. The next two games we played a little bit better," added Reeves.
No Lady Bulldog reached double digits in scoring against CAC, but five players had at least six points each. Senior point guard Maddie Goodner led the team with eight points. Senior Ashley Rozell and sophomore Emma Jewell each had seven points, while freshman Kyiah Julian and senior Erin Black chipped in with six points each.
Greenwood returned to Faulkner County last Friday for game two at Conway, this time defeating perennial power Little Rock Hall handily, 58-30. The Lady Bulldogs dominated play throughout the game, scoring in double digits in each period. They led 13-7 after one quarter and 27-17 at the half.
A 19-10 scoring differential in the third stanza sealed the victory as they coasted to a 12-3 run in the fourth quarter and the 28-point win. Julian led the team in scoring with 18 points, followed by Goodner with 13. Junior Maddi Pfeifer also saw some action and scored six points. The 6'4" Pfeifer joined the team after the start of the season, coming over from volleyball.
Reeves was obviously pleased with the win, though he seemed to acknowledge that LR Hall is not as formidable this year as in seasons past. "They're still a tradition-rich team and strong athletically, but we played a lot better and we had a size advantage. They did hit some perimeter shots on us."
The Lady Bulldogs then wrapped up tournament play last Saturday with another double-digit win over the Lady Lions of Searcy, 50-37, largely on the strength of a big first quarter. Greenwood scored 20 points in the opening eight minutes to build a 20-13 lead. They maintained that advantage at the half, leading 29-23, but turnovers and a lack of offense by Greenwood allowed Searcy to make a run in the third quarter, tying the score at 33-all.
But the shoe was on the other foot in the fourth period, with Searcy scoring just four points while Greenwood netted 17 to regain their earlier double figure lead, winning by 13 points. Goodner and Julian again shared the scoring lead with 10 points each. Junior Sarah Reeves added nine points, Erin Black eight points, and Ashley Rozell seven points.
The coach explained his team's strategy so far this season, saying, "Probably 40 to 50 [points] is going to be our scoring range right now. We're shooting for the 50-point range most of the time. We're playing more of a conservative half-court defense, which forces the other team to be a little more patient. There's not as many possessions for either team, so you don't have as many opportunities to score points.
"We're staying real basic right now with all of our players, trying to get fundamentally sound in all areas," said Reeves. "Every game we see things we still have to work on. We've got several more weeks before conference [play] starts, so we've just got to keep working and we'll continue to get better."
The Lady Bulldogs travel to Bentonville this Thursday night before playing at Fort Smith Northside next Monday. They haven't played a varsity game at home yet, and won't do so until the second game of the conference schedule on January 12th against Siloam Springs. They open league play at Bryant on Friday, January 8th.