It’s been tough sledding for the Lady Bulldogs this season, and not just because of the big snowstorm in late January. Head Coach Ryan Casalman and assistant coach Ryan Lensing and their players battled their way through an extraordinarily difficult non-conference schedule loaded with top 4A, 5A, and several 6A opponents. Then came the 5A conference schedule that has proven to be nearly as tough with teams like Farmington and Mountain Home sitting at or near the top of the standings.
Farmington’s Lady Cardinals are currently ranked #2 in the state across all classifications and remain unbeaten in 5A West play at 12-0. Mountain Home’s Lady Bombers are second in the league with the Van Buren girls in third place with two games remaining next week. Those three teams are already assured of playoff berths and now Greenwood’s Lady Bulldogs have joined the party, assuring themselves of the league’s fourth seed with last Friday’s victory over Siloam Springs.
Since we last checked in with the GHS ladies, they have gone 1-2 against Alma, Farmington, and Siloam Springs. They are currently 6-6 against conference opponents with games remaining next week against Russellville and Mountain Home, both on the road. Friday’s win over the Lady Panthers, coupled with Alma’s loss, put the Lady Bulldogs back into the postseason once again, albeit grabbing the last playoff slot available in the 5A West.
Alma
On February 10th the GHS girls traveled to Alma after beating the Lady Airedales in their first meeting in January. But in the rematch the Alma girls turned the tables and evened the score with a 74-69 victory. Greenwood won the first quarter, 14-10, and the fourth period, 28-21. But in-between the Alma girls won the second quarter, 19-11, and the third period, 24-16. Do the math and you get a five-point win for the home team. Alma led 29-25 at the half and 53-41 after three periods before Greenwood’s fourth quarter rally fell short.
Both teams shot the ball well. Alma hit 45% of their shots to 42% for Greenwood, but the Lady Airedales made nine three-pointers to five for the Lady Bulldogs. The home team also made three more free throws than the visitors, 17 to 14. That made the difference for Alma though Greenwood hit five more two-point baskets than Alma, 20 to 15. Alma barely won the rebounding battle, 36 to 32, and the teams were nearly even in turnovers.
GHS senior Kylah Pearcy had a career game, scoring an incredible 58 points, including four three-pointers and 14 of 15 free throws plus 16 two-point baskets. The four-year letterman and two-time state champion is closing in on the all-time scoring record for the Lady Bulldogs held by Anna Trusty, currently playing for Oral Roberts University. Other names on the list of top scorers include Madi Cartwright, presently playing for the University of Tulsa, and former GHS players Megan Hartness, Kinley Fisher, and Lundon (Williams) Lensing, currently a teacher at Greenwood.
Besides Pearcy’s remarkable performance, Halle Fox added seven points while Ashlin Rose and Ava Cranor had two points each. Pearcy also led the team in rebounds with 13 plus three assists and two steals. Ashlin Rose grabbed six boards, as did Ava Cranor. Fox had four rebounds, four steals, and six defensive deflections.
Farmington
The Lady Cardinals are loaded this season and have proven themselves to be head-and-shoulders above the rest of the league, earning the #1 or #2 spot in the overall state rankings for much of the season. After coming to Greenwood in January to extract a 23-point victory, 73-50, the Farmington girls hosted Greenwood just before Valentine’s Day, on Friday the 13th, and once again steamrolled the visitors by 27 points, 69-42.
The Lady Cards nearly doubled Greenwood’s scoring output in the opening quarter, 29-15, before a low-scoring second stanza sent both teams to their respective locker rooms at the half with Farmington on top, 37-24. Greenwood’s anemic offense continued in the second half, failing to reach double figures in either quarter. The hometown ladies put the game away with a 27-point third period while the visitors netted only nine points in both the third and fourth quarters.
The scoring disparity was clearly seen in the final stats. Farmington shot 48% to just 30% for Greenwood. The teams were almost even in three-point shots, but the Lady Cardinals owned the charity stripe with 17-of-22 made free throws to just three-of-four for Greenwood. The two squads were also nearly even in turnovers, though Farmington scored 20 points off Greenwood’s 15 giveaways to just nine points for the Lady Bulldogs off 16 hometown turnovers. As one might expect, the Lady Cards won the battle beneath the basket with 34 points in the paint and 36 rebounds to just 21 for the Lady Bulldogs.
Kylah Pearcy was kept in check, scoring only 16 points in the contest, about half of her per game average this season. She also had three rebounds, five assists, and four steals. Journey Clements hit a trio of three-pointers for nine points with two assists and two steals. Halle Fox added six points on two treys with four boards and five defensive deflections. Skyler Monks came off the bench late and scored six points with three rebounds. Ava Cranor netted five points with three boards.
Siloam Springs
Coming into last Friday’s home game against the Lady Panthers, Greenwood sat at 5-6 in league play, one game under the .500 mark and in desperate need of a win on senior night. In addition, they needed some help from some other teams in the league to get the playoff berth they coveted, and they got that help with Alma’s loss to Mountain Home.
The Lady Bulldogs shot out of the gate quickly, scoring the game’s first 10 points before closing the first quarter with an 18-8 lead. However, the visitors didn’t fold and stormed back to win the second stanza, 17-9, cutting the GHS halftime lead to just two points, 27-25. But Greenwood returned to the floor for the second half with renewed determination and a different game plan to dominate the Alma girls, winning the third quarter, 24-12, and the fourth, 25-10, for the 76-47 victory.
Of his team’s quick start, Coach Casalman was pleasantly surprised, saying, “We’ve been notoriously slow starters. Coach Lensing told them before the game [they] needed to go early and often, and it’s got to be from the tip. We jumped out there and got after it pretty good.” Ava Cranor hit the game’s first bucket before Kylah Pearcy scored five points, including a trio of free throws. Eva Booth then drained the first of her five three-pointers for a 10-0 GHS lead halfway through the opening period. As a result, Greenwood never trailed in the contest.
The Head Coach also talked about their second half adjustments and the importance of a good start to the third quarter. “That was huge,” he said. “I finally figured out we needed to get Pearcy in the high post, get her the ball, and let her go to work. She reeled off a couple of points that got us some open shots on the perimeter. It got us going offensively, and when you get going offensively, the defense picks up intensity,” he added. “We got some turnovers and some easy baskets.”
Neither team shot the ball particularly well, especially the Alma girls, who made just 26% of their shots compared to nearly 35% for Greenwood. The teams were almost even from beyond the arc with the hometown ladies holding a slight edge in three-pointers, five-to-four. But Greenwood did dominate at the free throw line, making 25-of-32 charity shots to 13-of-21 by the visitors. Greenwood also had 21 steals among Alma’s 32 turnovers, allowing the Lady Bulldogs to score 36 points off turnovers. Alma led in rebounding, 46 to 37.
Individually, Kylah Pearcy returned to her high-scoring ways with 32 points, crossing the 1,900-point barrier for her career. She was 10-of-21 from the floor and 12-of-13 from the line. She also led her teammates in rebounding with 11, plus 15 defensive deflections, five assists, and eight steals. She was a human tornado. But she also got some scoring help from fellow senior Eva Booth, who hit five three-pointers and a pair of free throws for 17 points. Booth added four rebounds and a pair of steals in a best-ever varsity performance after being a junior varsity player for most of her high school career.
Others who scored for the Lady Bulldogs included Ava Cranor and Trinity Spicer with seven points each. Cranor added three rebounds, seven deflections, and five steals while Spicer came off the bench late to grab four boards. Halle Fox contributed six points with four rebounds and Journey Clements got three points, three boards, plus three assists, five deflections, and four steals. Rylee McAdams and Skyler Monks added two points each. McAdams also had three rebounds, four deflections, an assist and a steal in 10 minutes of play.
Prior to the game, every GHS senior player, along with team managers and members of the spirit squads, were recognized, along with their family members. The Lady Bulldogs had seven seniors players honored, including Kylah Pearcy, Ashlin Rose, Journey Clements, Trinity Spicer, Piper Ames, Lakyn Wyatt, and Eva Booth.
Regarding Booth, Coach Casalman said, “I’m super proud of her. What a good game for a senior. I’ve only been around these girls for two years, and I told them I appreciated being a part of [this] for two years, but they’ve left a big mark on Greenwood Lady Bulldogs basketball.”