From Staff Reports

 

AMERICUS – With six seconds left in the game, Georgia College’s Harper Vick scored to give the Lady Bobcats a 68-67 lead. The Lady Hurricanes had a chance for a winning basket, but Morgan Towells’ layup at the end was missed, giving GC a 68-67 win on Wednesday, February 6, at the GSW Storm Dome.

However, many in the arena felt that Vick should have been called for traveling just before she scored the go-ahead basket, but the call was not made.

The Lady Hurricanes jumped out to an 11-5 lead, capped off by a layup by Tyra Smith midway through the first quarter. GC responded by going on a 7-0 run to take the lead. However, Brianna Perry ended the Lady Bobcats’ run when she scored to regain the lead for the Lady Hurricanes with 3:00 left in the quarter. GSW ended the first quarter leading 17-14.

However, back-to-back turnovers by the Lady Hurricanes led to GC taking a 19-17 lead within one minute into the second quarter. The Lady Bobcats scored again; prompting GSW head coach Kelly Britsky to call a timeout to settle her club down.

Out of the timeout, the Lady Hurricanes responded as Lex Chatman nailed a three-pointer, giving GSW the lead. Towells answered with a shot of her own to give GSW a 30-27 lead. At that point, both teams went through a short scoring drought, but a three-pointer by Jamesha Smith gave the Lady Hurricanes a 35-31 halftime lead.

The Lady Hurricanes stormed out of the gate to begin the second half by going on a 13-7 run to take a 48-38 lead. Both teams hit free throws near the end of the third quarter, and the Lady Hurricanes led 52-43 going into the final quarter.

In the fourth quarter, GC went on several scoring runs, as they held their own at both ends of the court. They opened up with a 9-4 run to cut GSW’s lead to 56-52 with 6:33 remaining. This prompted a timeout by Britsky so that her club could regroup.

As they had done previously in the game, the Lady Hurricanes responded positively out of a timeout. Both Towells and Mariya Trimble scored to expand GSW’s lead. Perry scored to expand the Lady Hurricanes’ lead to five at 66-61 with 1:44 left. However, the Lady Bobcats never showed any signs of letting up as they tied the game 66 seconds later.

With 12 seconds left, Perry nailed one of two free throws, forcing GC to call a timeout. Vick, who was the Lady Bobcats’ second leading scorer, drained a shot from inside the paint to give GC a 68-67 lead. As time expired, Towells drove to the basket, but her layup was missed at the buzzer partly due to the defense of GC.

Both teams shot well from the foul line. GSW made 15 of 19 free throws for 78.9 percent, while GC made 14 of 18 foul shots for 78 percent.

Towells led the Lady Hurricanes in scoring with 20 points and nearly posted a double-double as she grabbed nine rebounds and tallied two assists. Perry scored 19 points for GSW. She also created three steals and blocked two shots.

The Lady Hurricanes are currently in the midst of a six-game losing streak. They are 8-12 overall and 5-9 in the Peach Belt Conference. GC improves to 9-11 overall and 7-7 in the PBC.

The Lady Hurricanes will try to end their losing streak when they head to the North Georgia Mountains to take on Young Harris College on Saturday, February 9. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.