Holly Wildcat Weekly Basketball Update, February 12, 2014

One of Holly’s basketball teams extended its winning streak with two victories last week, while the other snapped a short skid, but could not make it two straight in the win column. The Wildcats earned wins over Wiley and Eads, pushing their streak to six straight, but the Lady Wildcats fell to #2 Eads one night after a victory over Wiley had ended a two-game losing streak.

In last Friday’s 61-42 win over Wiley, the Lady Wildcats dominated the even quarters, outscoring the Lady Panthers 38-20 in the second and fourth periods. An 18-7 second frame put Holly in front 31-16 at the half, and a 20-13 final quarter put the capper on the victory. Macy Kennedy continued her strong freshman campaign with a game-high 16 points for the Lady Wildcats. Ashlyn Hess and Sheridan Rushton added 15 and 12 points, respectively.

It looked like Holly caught a big break early in Saturday’s game with Eads, as the Lady Wildcats were able to pick up a pair of fouls on the leading scorer for the Lady Eagles, Tanaia Hansen, relegating her to the bench late in the first quarter. Instead, Eboni Nash came off the bench and sparked Eads to a huge first half. A half-court buzzer-beater by Brittanie Newman sent the teams to the intermission with Eads in front 40-23. The Lady Eagles would cruise home with a 60-40 road win. Kennedy was the only Holly player in double figures, recording 15 points to go with six rebounds. Four Eads players scored 10 or more points, led by Nash with 15.

Holly has lost four of its last seven games, and now takes a 9-6 record into this weekend’s action. The Lady Wildcats will visit Kim on Friday and then host Cheyenne Wells on Saturday. Wrapping around to next Tuesday, Holly will also host Granada.

The Wildcats picked up their fourth straight win by single digits last Friday against Wiley, but they needed a big second half to thwart the upset attempt of the upstart Panthers. Wiley led 26-22 at the half, but Holly whittled the margin down to a single point heading into the fourth, 34-33. The Wildcats were able to make plays down the stretch to earn the 49-45 victory. Yaniel Vidal led a balanced Holly attack with 11 points.

Saturday’s contest with Eads would not hold nearly as much drama, as the Wildcats turned a 19-11 first quarter lead into a 64-27 victory over the Eagles. All eleven Wildcats who saw action contributed points, with Drew Thompson and Lane Salzbrenner taking honors, scoring 16 and 12 points, respectively. Tyler Rouse scored 17 to lead the Eagles, who saw their freshman sensation, Caden Parker, limited to three points.

The third-ranked Wildcats will face La Veta on Friday at Kim High School, and then host #2 Cheyenne Wells on Saturday. Also, Holly will host Granada on Tuesday, Feb. 18.

By Kerry Sherman

Kerry Sherman and his wife, Colleen, moved to Lamar in August of 2013, from Anton, Colorado, to cover Southeastern Colorado high schools for Colorado Preps. Kerry is in his third year of streaming high school sports online for Colorado Preps, and this is his 23rd year of covering high schools for various print and online outlets throughout Colorado. He also has nine years of coaching experience, with the boys basketball programs at Woodlin and Otis.