Straughn Lady Tigers earn 5th straight trip to South Regional
Published 12:05 am Wednesday, February 15, 2017
- Lexi Hooks has been a big part of the Lady Tigers’ successful season. Josh Dutton/Star-News
The Straughn Lady Tigers pulled off an upset on Monday night as they traveled to Dothan and knocked off Providence Christian 50-49 in the Class 3A South sub-regionals.
Providence Christian jumped out front 13-9 to start off the contest.
In the second period, Providence Christian’s defense forced several turnovers from the Lady Tigers that helped them build a 26-13 lead at halftime.
The Lady Tigers began to claw back in the contest in the third period with a few timely baskets, but still trailed Providence Christian 37-27 heading into the final frame.
The Lady Tigers really sparked to life in the final period and picked up their intensity on the way to eliminating Providence Christian from the playoffs.
Alyssa Dean knocked down a free throw with 5.4 seconds left on the clock to give the Lady Tigers the win.
The Lady Tigers were aided by having four players reach double-digit scoring totals.
“We finally started hitting shots and that got our confidence up,” Lady Tigers’ head coach Scott Kinsaul said. “It just went from there. That relaxed us and we turned up our intensity. We really started playing with confidence.”
Lexi Hooks led the way for the Lady Tigers with 11 points in the victory.
Dean, Colby Adams and Allie Kelley each finished the night with 10 points.
“We played well for the most part,” Kinsaul said. “We had some bad turnovers against their press in the second quarter. I told the girls that the first few minutes of the third quarter were going to be very crucial. We cut their lead down to 4 points in the third, but then they went back up to 10 to start the fourth. I’m so proud of these girls for not quitting.”
With the win, the Lady Tigers will make their fifth-straight trip to compete in the South Regional Tournament.
The Lady Tigers will travel to Dothan for the first round of the South Regional to take on the T.R. Miller Lady Tigers. The first round match between the Lady Tigers will be Saturday at 3 p.m.