Lady Bulldogs playing for conference championship
The Greenwood Lady Bulldogs, the reigning Class 5A state basketball champs, can begin their title defense in earnest this week by capturing the 5A West Conference crown with a victory on the road at Morrilton Friday night. The GHS girls are currently tied with Vilonia for the league lead with identical 11-2 records, but Greenwood holds the tiebreaker in points after splitting the season series between the two teams.
The Lady Bulldogs finished the first half of the conference schedule in January in second place, losing only to Vilonia for a 6-1 league mark. Despite having to reschedule their game at Harrison due to bad weather, they have so far repeated their first half performance, losing only to Siloam Springs while defeating Vilonia, and currently stand at 5-1 in the second half. They easily defeated Morrilton earlier this season and should close out with a win over the Lady Devil Dogs Friday night to secure the league title.
The GHS girls have also been bolstered by the return of junior forward Endsley Evans, who missed much of the early conference schedule with an illness. After the game at Harrison was snowed out and rescheduled, the conference schedule resumed on February 8th at home against Alma. Greenwood got balanced scoring in the 67-55 win with seven players contributing five points or more, with three girls - sophomore Presleigh Atkins (14 points), sophomore Sammy Richards (13 points), and Endsley Evans (12 points) - each scoring in double figures.
Greenwood trailed 16-14 after the first period, but led 30-27 at the half, 50-42 after three quarters, and held on for the 12-point victory. Other GHS players who scored included senior forward Jessica Moudy who added eight points, freshman guard Lundon Williams who scored seven points, with junior forward Haley Donald and sophomore forward Allie Barnes contributing six and five points, respectively.
Due to a one-day weather-related postponement, Greenwood's next game was Saturday, February 12th. The Lady Bulldogs were on the road at Vilonia with a chance to take over sole possession of first place, a deed they accomplished with a convincing 45-28 victory. Greenwood's smothering defense didn't allow the Lady Eagles to score in double digits in any of the game's four quarters. Tied at 8-8 after one period, the Lady 'Dogs actually trailed 17-13 at the half, but rallied with a strong second half, scoring 13 and 18 points in each of the last two periods for the win. Four players reached double figures offensively for Greenwood, led by Allie Barnes with 14 points. Lundon Williams, Presleigh Atkins, and Endsley Evans all scored 10 points each.
Perhaps relishing their status as conference leaders a bit too much, the Lady Bulldogs stumbled at home the following Tuesday, February 15th, against Siloam Springs, losing to the Lady Panthers in the final seconds of overtime, 49-47. Falling behind early, 13-4 after eight minutes, Greenwood trailed 19-15 at the half and 28-27 after three periods. With the game tied at 44-all at the end of regulation, the Lady Panthers won the extra period 5-3 to earn the road victory.
Following the disappointing loss, GHS head coach Clay Reeves said of his team, "I think they thought we won the trophy Saturday night. But I don't remember them giving out a trophy. Maybe this will wake them up." Greenwood was led in scoring by Presleigh Atkins with 12 points, Allie Barnes with 10 points, Lundon Williams with nine points, and Sammy Richards with eight points. Endsley Evans, who fouled out of the game in the overtime period, added six points.
The Harrison game was made up on Wednesday, February 16th, and resulted in another easy win for the Lady Bulldogs, 67-36. Greenwood blew the game open early, leading 35-9 at the half and clearing the bench in the second half. Endsley Evans had 14 points to lead the team and was the only Lady Bulldog in double digits. Presleigh Atkins added nine points while junior guard Allie Wilson, Jessica Moudy, and Sammy Richards all scored eight points each.
Last Friday, February 18th, the GHS girls traveled to Central Arkansas to take on the Lady Panthers of Greenbrier, and managed to slip out of town with a hard-fought 63-58 overtime victory. Greenwood led early, 13-10 after one period, and still held a slight advantage at the intermission, 21-18. Trailing 31-29 entering the final quarter, the Lady Panthers managed to tie the game at 44, forcing the game into overtime. Led by freshman point guard Lundon Williams, who scored seven points in the extra period, the Lady Bulldogs pulled away for the five-point win. Williams, the daughter of assistant coach Ronnie Williams, also led the team in scoring with 20 points. Haley Donald added 15 points and Presleigh Atkins had 13 points.
This past Tuesday night the GHS girls closed out the home portion of their season schedule with a solid win over the visiting Lady Eagles of Huntsville, 46-24. The visitors failed to reach double digits in scoring in any of the game's four quarters, while Greenwood failed to do so only once, scoring just nine points in the second period. Endsley Evans led Greenwood with 14 points while Lundon Williams scored 10 points.
The victory set up this weekend's season finale on the road at Morrilton with the conference title on the line, not to mention the top seed from the 5A West in the upcoming state playoffs to be held in Alma starting next week. "There's a lot on the line," said Coach Reeves, referring to Friday's game at Morrilton. "We're going to the state tournament, and we'd like to go in with the momentum of being the number one seed out of our conference, and take care of things from there. We won't overlook them," said Reeves of last place Morrilton. "I think our kids will be ready."
Bulldogs still hoping for post-season miracle
The Greenwood Bulldogs are currently sitting at 13-12 overall and 6-7 in league play, in fifth place, hoping to close out their season with a road win at Morrilton Friday night. But even then they will need some help to make the state tournament as the fourth seed from the tough 5A West Conference. They kept their thin hopes alive this past Tuesday night with a come-from-behind win over a very good Huntsville team. Greenwood needs Huntsville to lose at home to Greenbrier Friday night if the Bulldogs have any hope of making the post-season.
The second half of the conference schedule began with a postponement of the game at Harrison on February 4th, so the back end of the league slate actually kicked off with a home loss to Alma on Tuesday, February 8th. The first place Airedales led throughout the game, 10-7, 25-20, and 43-37 before notching the 62-51 victory. Leading the scoring for Greenwood was junior guard Ryan Lensing with 18 points. Senior forward Billyjack Freeman added nine points, while senior center Chris Caudle and junior guard Braden Suter added eight points each.
The next game at Vilonia was moved to Saturday, February 12th, due to winter weather conditions, and the Bulldogs managed to secure their first road win in conference play, 59-57. A solid first half enabled the visiting Bulldogs to build a 37-26 lead at the intermission. Greenwood scored 23 points in the second quarter to build the 11-point cushion, but a 16-0 scoring run by the Eagles in the second half erased Greenwood's advantage and made the game close down to the stretch before the 'Dogs pulled out the much-needed road victory. Ryan Lensing led the team with 22 points, while Chris Caudle added 19. Braden Suter and Billyjack Freeman each scored six points.
The Bulldogs followed up with another victory at home over Siloam Springs on Tuesday, February 15th, downing the Panthers 55-36. Greenwood led 15-9 after eight minutes and 22-16 at the break. They stretched the lead to 15 points at 39-24 after three periods and held on for the 19-point victory. For the second straight game senior center Chris Caudle had 19 points, including a pair of three-pointers. Sophomore guard Drew Morgan also made his presence felt by scoring 18 points. Ryan Lensing, the team's leading scorer this season, added nine points in the win.
Their state tournament dreams still alive, the Bulldogs hoped to steal another road win at Greenbrier last Friday, February 18th, but the Panthers proved to be too much for the GHS boys to handle. Greenbrier had a huge opening quarter, scoring 27 points and led 27-16 after eight minutes and 41-29 at the half. Both teams scored 18 points in the third quarter, but the Panthers outscored Greenwood over the final eight minutes to secure the 76-63 win. Drew Morgan had 16 points while Ryan Lensing added 15 points for Greenwood. Billyjack Freeman chipped in with nine points.
This past Tuesday, February 22nd, the Bulldogs and the Huntsville Eagles found themselves locked in a contest that was physically challenging and emotionally intense. The officials didn't spare their whistles, especially early, and Greenwood's inability to hit free throws consistently nearly cost the Bulldogs the victory. Huntsville led 12-6 after the opening period and 30-24 at the intermission. The Bulldogs missed at least seven free throws in the first half alone.
In the second half, Huntsville turned almost exclusively to star player Tucker Trumbo, who finished the game with 32 points. The Bulldogs countered with strong play from Lensing, Freeman, and Morgan, and a solid third quarter performance gave Greenwood the lead heading into the final period of play, 40-37. The Eagles led 50-49 around the four-minute mark in the fourth quarter, but Greenwood began to slowly pull away, building a six-point margin at 59-53 with a minute remaining.
A Huntsville three-pointer and more missed free throws by Greenwood kept the outcome in doubt as the visitors trimmed the deficit to 59-56. But Ryan Lensing finally put the nails in the coffin with a pair of charity shots with 15 seconds left. When the horn sounded, the Bulldogs had notched a 62-59 win. Greenwood was led in scoring by Ryan Lensing with 21 points. Billyjack Freeman added 17 points.
"We wanted to limit their threes as a team, and really just attack them at the basket and try to wear them down as much as we could," said GHS head coach Brian Martin. "Billyjack Freeman had an outstanding game on both ends of the court. It was a great game for our seniors tonight. Both teams really wanted this win. I knew it was going to be a physical night. If we shoot better from the line we don't make it as tough at the end," he said. Referring to his team's post-season hopes, Martin added, "All we can control is what we can control, and let the chips fall where they may. We've got to go to Morrilton and win one on the road."