LANTANA – Santaluces extended its home winning streak to three as it downed Lake Worth by a score of 62-40.
Santaluces (4-1) had to put up with Lake Worth’s tough defense throughout the first quarter, as the Lady Trojans were able to frustrate the Lady Chiefs in a low scoring affair of 9-7.
The first frame ended with Brona Jean ripping the ball from a Lake Worth guard and hustling up the court to score on a fast break layup.
Santaluces was able to crack Lake Worth’s defensive code in the second quarter as it exploded for 18 points. The Santaluces defense was also able to hold Lake Worth to seven points again to make it a score of 27-14 going into halftime.
Leading scorers at the half:
Santaluces – Emiah Downie with 10 points; Brona Jean with 8 points
Lake Worth – Jessica Harris with 11 points
The defensive showcase would continue in the second half as Santaluces forced Lake Worth into a series of bad shots.
The Lady Chiefs offense would continue getting to the bucket and took over the game. Fast break scores from Emiah Downie and Haedi Reid gave the Lady Chiefs momentum going into the fourth with a 42-24 lead.
The final frame was much of the same as Santaluces went up by as much as 21 points midway through the fourth and continued its suffocating defense. The Lady Chiefs had the luxury of playing some reserves to down the Lady Trojans.
Leading scorers for the game:
Santaluces – Downie and Brona Jean with 16 points each
Lake Worth – Harris with 23 points
Observations from tonight’s game:
Santaluces isn’t quite the team from last year that made a deep run in the FHSAA playoffs, but this girls team is well-coached, confident, and team-oriented. Downie will be a cog in the Lady Chiefs offense as she’s currently the team’s scoring leader.
Head Coach Zoe Price has a squad that will be able to compete with some of the best in the county, although her squad may need a little more development as they get into the latter part of their schedule.
Lake Worth isn’t a horrible team, even though it sports a 1-5 record. The Trojans defense is superb, but they can’t seem to score enough points to keep themselves in games down the stretch.
Santaluces will have its next game at Centennial on Friday, Nov. 30 at 6 p.m. The Lady Chiefs will try and get their first road win of the season.
