Albany girls hold on to 2nd
The Lady Lion basketball team came up just a little short against Stamford last Friday, falling 45-42 in the final minute or two to end up tied with the Lady Bulldogs for second place in the district race.
Albany traveled to Roscoe on Tuesday, staying in contention for second after a tight 33-31 win with two regular season games remaining.
The Lady Lions will be on the road again Friday against Hawley. The JV will start at 4:00 p.m. in Hawley, with the varsity girls tipping off at 6:30 p.m.
Albany will end the regular season on Tuesday, hosting the district-leading Haskell Maidens.
The Lady Lions were trailing by five points at halftime of the Stamford game, but led by a point after the third period.
“This was a very physical, hard-fought game,” girls coach Tate Thompson said. “The officials let things get out of control a little bit, so we came out of this bruised up. Even though we lost, I am very proud of our girls for coming out with the effort and desire that they are capable of having.”
Jaleigh Morales was the offensive standout, with Torie Fuentes named for defense.
“I told the girls that Stamford didn’t play harder or better than us,” he said. “They just got a few more rolls than we did. I’m very proud of the way we fought.”
Albany 9 8 14 11 - 42
Stamford 13 10 8 14 - 45
Scoring were Fuentes 10, Jillian Guinn 4, Carley Green 2, Alli Hill 7, and Morales 17.
The girls picked up a 43-38 win in Cross Plains on Jan. 22.
“We came out sluggish, while Cross Plains was ready to play,” the coach said. “Our senior, Jillian Guinn, really stepped up, hitting four three-pointers in the first half to keep us in the game until we could get things going.”
While he was not happy with the way the game started, the coach was happy with the perseverance.
“We came out flat but still were able to fight through for a win,” he said. “The girls stayed disciplined late in the game and kept from fouling out.”
Guinn was named the offensive standout, and Green was tapped for defense.
Albany 13 13 7 10 - 43
Cross Plains 8 14 11 5 - 38
Scoring were Fuentes 5, Guinn 14, Hill 6, Morales 13, and Elia Hebel 6.
JV Girls Split Games
The JV Lady Lions also came home with a win from Cross Plains, 35-25.
“We finally got settled in and took control in the second half,” coach Richard Sullivan said.
Sara Smith and Ansleigh Garcia were offensive standouts, and Smith was named for defense.
Albany JV 5 7 11 12 - 35
Cross Plains 5 8 8 4 - 25
Scoring were Smith 12, Tana Thompson 5, Ana Balliew 4, and Garcia 14.
The JV had a tough time against the Stamford JV, dropping the game 39-23.
“We came up short due to a fourth quarter run by Stamford,” Sullivan said. “We were unable to catch up, although it wasn’t because of a lack of effort.”
The loss dropped the JV to 5-2 in district.
Garcia was the offensive standout, and Elizabeth Chavez was named for defense.
Albany 9 4 6 4 - 23
Stamford 8 6 8 17 - 39
Scoring were Thompson 7, Chavez 2, Balliew 2, and Garcia 12.
