Smith helps Smoky Mountain take league win over Brevard

Tara Green added 16 points and Lindsey Lewis netted 14 to go with nine boards. The duo accounted for all but three points for the Lady Mustangs (11-3, 5-0).

Brevard was led by Elin Cope with 14 points.

"We got off to fast starts in the first and second halves, and that allowed us to overcome some spurts by Brevard," Coach Cindi Simmons said. "We played well down the stretch and hit some key free throws."

SM trailed by as many as seven in the second quarter and was down by three at halftime.

The Lady Mustangs never trailed after a 10-0 run to start the second half. Smith had six of those points for a 37-30 advantage at the 5:52 mark.

They would not score the remainder of the third period but played good defense by holding the Lady Devils to seven points. Cope made one of two free throws for a 37-37 tie with 46.1 seconds on the clock, and that's how it stayed entering the fourth period.

Green drilled a three-pointer to start the final stanza putting her team ahead for good. Two free throws by Smith and a Lewis basket made it 44-37 at the 6:20 mark.

SM maintained a narrow lead the rest of the way, but the Lady Devils kept the heat on. They were as close as 51-47 when Shannon Silver made two free throws with 2:03 on the clock.

Smith answered with a layup, and Kaitlin Ritchie hit two free throws for the game's biggest lead, 55-47, with 38.4 seconds to go.

The Lady Mustangs opened the game in a flurry jumping to an 8-0 lead with 6:42 left in the first quarter. Smith had four of the points.

Brevard quickly turned the tide with nine straight points, including five by Lindsey Bolt, for a 9-8 edge at the 5:17 mark.

There were six lead changes the remainder of the quarter, which ended with the Lady Devils leading 19-16.

Brevard led throughout the second period. The largest margin was 25-18 on Katie Peterson's 16-footer at the 5:22 mark.

Green scored just before the buzzer narrowing the gap to 30-27.

Smith had a near perfect shooting night as she was eight of eight from the floor and seven of eight from the line. Green made six field goals, including a three-pointer, and three foul shots. Lewis scored all her points from the floor.

Ritchie completed the scoring with three points.

Lewis had nine rebounds. Ritchie recorded five assists and four steals while Green came up with five steals.

SM shot 42 percent from the floor.

The Lady Mustang JV are 6-4 after a 43-36 victory. Katie Crisp scored 12 points, and Jennifer Hyatt added 11.

SM led at quarter breaks by scores of 11-6, 28-16 and 36-25.

"They did a great job executing the plays," Coach Tonya Kenyon said. "They had a lot of intensity and did a better job playing as a team than they have all year."

Back to Sports: 01/18/01.