The Festus Tigers Girls Varsity Basketball team moved to 5-2 on the season after a middling week against a couple of familiar foes. The Tigers had a nice, clean victory at Windsor over the Owls 56-40, but struggled mightily in the followup against Perryville at home. They fell 50-20 in the latter and just couldn’t get the offense going.
The Tigers struggled a bit early on after their drive to Windsor, putting up just 12 in the first quarter while allowing the Owls to rack up 14. They took it to another gear in the second though, with a 15-spot that complimented a solid defensive performance, holding the Owls to a mere seven points. That surge made it 27-21 at halftime in favor of the Tigers.
After the break Festus didn’t let up. They kept their foot on the gas in the third and outscored Windsor 17-11 to extend their lead to double digits. The fourth was just as clutch, as seen by the 12-8 effort, and this young defense showed some resolve in a gritty situation. They held on to win 56-40 and moved to 5-1 on the season.
Josie Allen was the leading scorer in this one with 20 points and had three steals and four assists to boot. Ciara McDonald nearly notched a double-double with 18 points and nine boards, and Mya Courtois had a couple big three pointers in the first quarter to kick-start the Tiger offense.
Things would take an ugly turn in the next game though with the Tigers hosting the Pirates from Perryville. The first quarter was a defensive standoff and both teams had issues putting the ball in the net, referenced by a surprisingly low 6-5 frame that favored the Pirates. Then the wheels came off in the second. Perryville upped their offensive game and outscored the Tigers 13-5 to take a convincing 19-10 lead into the halftime break.
The second half didn’t get any better for the ladies of Festus, as Perryville broke out for 17 points, and the Tigers could muster just six. The defense caved, but give credit to the Pirates for hitting their shots. That created a hill too steep to climb for the home team, and after the final whistle Festus found themselves at the mercy of a 50-20 loss. Just their second of the season.
There weren’t really any offensive standouts to write home about in this one, as Courtois led the team with five points. Allen was held to a season-low four points and the usual heavy hitters were quiet in this one. Defensively, McDonald stood out with seven rebounds, but the girls hit just under 19% of their field goals.
The Tigers will be looking to rebound this week against Herculaneum in their only game before the holiday break.