Pleasant Hope, Mo. (For OzarksSportsZone.com) -- The Pleasant Hope Lady Pirates opened the 2012-13 campaign with a 55-42 victory over visiting Central in the season opener for both teams on Monday night. Senior point guard Catlin Evans led the way with 22 points, including three 3-pointers, as the Lady Pirates connected on seven shots from behind the arc on the night.
“We played really hard, but we did not play real well at times,” said Pleasant Hope head coach Jim Flora. “I was pleased with our effort, though. We got after them and forced them into some mistakes.”
Junior Starla Staffen chipped in 14 points for the Lady Pirates, while senior Kari Hillenburg added 10, including three first half 3-pointers. Freshman Jaslyn Williams led the Lady Bulldogs with 11 points, and showed flashes of a bright future in her first varsity game. Junior Savannah Rush added nine points for Central.
It was evident that both teams were playing their first game of the season, as the overall play got a little sloppy at times, with both teams having trouble with turnovers throughout the contest.
“I knew it would be a little crazy tonight,” said Central head coach Callie Newton. “As a coaching staff, we are still trying to figure out who needs to be on the floor and when. Right now, our best option at point guard is a freshman, so we are lacking leadership.”
Pleasant Hope led 10-9 at the end of the first quarter, but broke the game open with a 3-point barrage in the second. The Lady Pirates nailed four 3pointers in the period to take a 32-21 at half. Central tried to threaten late, but Pleasant Hope snuffed out any hope of a rally by hitting free throws down the stretch. With the season opener in the books, there were plenty of positives and lessons to be learned.
“I thought we played really hard,” said Newton. “We fought hard so I was happy with that. We just have to work on our ball handling and bringing the ball up the floor. We also need to work on our rebounding. We’re 5-6 across (the frontline), so that’s something we’ll battle all year long.”
Despite the win, Coach Flora saw plenty for the Lady Pirates to work on.
“We have to do a better job of taking care of the ball,” said Flora. “We want to play fast, so we’re going to have some turnovers, but we had a lot of unforced turnovers tonight. We also have to get our post players involved. We had them open tonight, but we relied on the outside shot too much.”
Pleasant Hope (1-0) will begin play in the Fair Grove Tournament on Nov. 26, while Central (0-1) returns to action on Nov. 30 at Hillcrest.
Pleasant Hope (1-0) will begin play in the Fair Grove Tournament on Nov. 26, while Central (0-1) returns to action on Nov. 30 at Hillcrest.
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