Lady Lions deliver big win over Hawley

The Albany Lady Lions pulled off a major upset last Tuesday, defeating Hawley 37-27 in a district matchup.

The Albany girls had their district open date Friday, Jan. 23, which allowed them to avoid a weather-related cancellation.

The Lady Lions’ game against Stamford was postponed from Tuesday night until Wednesday because of possible bad weather. Details will be reported next week.

They will face Haskell Friday, Jan. 30, in the Albany gym, with the junior varsity starting at 4 p.m. and the varsity game around 6:15 p.m. The boys teams will also play Haskell that night.

Albany head coach Ashlyn Bevel said the win against Hawley was fueled by tough defense and careful preparation.

“Going into this game, we knew we had to play tough defense and shut down their best player to win,” Bevel said. “We were able to do that, holding their go-to player to just nine points. Our defense was on point, and it’s what won this game.”

Hawley had defeated Albany by 22 points in the first round of district play, but the Lady Lions reversed the outcome in the second meeting, defeating the team ranked second in the district by 10 points. Bevel said the victory moved Albany back into a playoff position in fourth place.

“The girls are working hard each week and fighting in every game to earn a spot in the playoffs,” Bevel said.

Scorers for Albany against Hawley were Zayne Lefevre with 19 points, Ashlyn Miller and Tinley Hefner each with five, and Keeley Britting and Madi Parrott with four apiece.

There was no junior varsity game, as Hawley did not field a JV team.