Lady Hawks fall to Stillman Valley

By Andy Colbert

Reporter

A 31-7 deficit midway through the second quarter was too much for Oregon to overcome in a 56-40 BNC loss to Stillman Valley on Tuesday night.

Like swarming bees on defense, the Lady Cardinals (14-5, 5-2) took control of the game with an intimidating style of play.

“We weren’t physical enough,” Oregon (16-8, 5-4) coach Kristy Eckardt said. “They were getting every loose ball. They got into our heads and we got into too big of a hole.”

The shots weren’t dropping either, as the Lady Hawks were only 5-for-22 from the field and 4-9 from the free throw line in the first half.

The combination of full-court pressure and facing a front line of 5-10, 5-10 and 6-0 hurt Oregon.

“It changes how we play the game,” Eckardt said. “They were deflecting over the top.”

A positive for Oregon was out-scoring Stillman 33-25 the remainder of the game, as Averi Sanders got the rally going with a 3-pointer.

Early in the third quarter, Oregon closed to within 33-20, but basically traded points the remainder of the game.

McKaylee Beeter led the Lady Hawks with 11 points, followed by Maisie Mahoney with some nifty moves underneath for eight, and Bree Tourtillott, Samantha Lambrigtsen, and Lexi Smith with six each.