On Friday, Dec. 13, Manual came out victorious against the Central Yellow Jackets after an intense game, with a score of 68-51.
First Half:
The game began with Manual taking possession of the ball following the tip off. The Lady Crimsons scored the first points of the game within seconds. Shortly after, a foul was made on Takenzie Young (#1, 9). Various calls were made throughout the first quarter, including a foul which head coach Ashley Franklin believed to be a fair block made by Kendall Hemmerle (#12, 10). Towards the end of the first half, two thirty-second timeouts were called, one from each team. The first quarter ended 19-13, with the Yellow Jackets in the lead.
The second quarter was just as difficult for the Lady Crimsons as the first. Central scored the first points and Manual was forced to play defense for the majority of the quarter. The Yellow Jackets also went into the quarter with more momentum and aggression, as they held the lead. That didn’t stop Manual from fighting back, however.
After Manual players were knocked over, they resisted and managed to maintain possession of the ball. Central then called a full timeout with four minutes left, holding onto their lead and winning 24-15. Shortly after, a foul was called on Central, allowing Manual to make a trip to the free throw line. Although all shots were made, it wasn’t enough to catch up to the Yellow Jackets. The first half ended with intense back and forth shots. Eventually, the shooting streak ended when Hemmerle blocked Central’s shot.
The score at the end of the first half was 34-29, in favor of Central.
“I feel like we came out slow and we made some adjustments, we’re young, so we’re going to have ups and downs,” Franklin said.
Second Half:
Manual began on the right foot by making the first points of the second half. Although the Lady Crimsons were forced to play yet again more defense at the start, Brooklyn Davis (#24, 11) was able to get the ball back and score. A timeout was called shortly after.
A few of Manual’s possessions started a little shaky, but ended with points on the scoreboard. During one, the ball was stolen from Manual but Electra Lovely-Tolbert (#4, 12) got it back and ended up scoring. However, perhaps the most anxiety-inducing play was made by Bailey Fetcher (#35, 10) and a few other Lady Crimson players. When they shot the ball, it would only dance around the rim, never truly resulting in points being made.
The third quarter ended with an impressive play, though. Central attempted to score but ultimately missed. Manual then rebounded, but Central took back the ball. Davis didn’t let them get past the center of the court before stealing the ball back and ultimately scoring.
By the end of the third quarter, the Lady Crimsons lead the Yellow Jackets 48-39.
“We came together when we were in the locker. We were just explaining to each other. What we could do better,” Lovely-Tolbert said.
The last quarter began with Central scoring points first. Young tried to get the ball back but was fouled and made the free throws. Davis tried to make a pass to Hemmerle, but she was unable to catch it. Despite a few setbacks, nothing stopped the Lady Crimsons as they gained more and more momentum as time ran down.
Various fouls were called on Central, including a foul on Hemmerle, Davis, and Young. Because of this, the game ended with an overwhelming amount of points made by Manual players. Eventually, time ran down, signaling the end of the game and another victory for Manual.
The Lady Crimsons won with a final score of 68-51. “We just brought our energy up. We got together; we talked about it and pulled through” Young said.
