Lady Demons show heart in opener | williamstown-sports

By Wade Holland

Publisher

Battling first-game jitters, injuries, and foul trouble, the Williamstown Lady Demons displayed a lot of heart in a season-opening 73-72 loss to visiting Gallatin Co. on Tuesday night.

With starter Rachel Montgomery out of action, and multiple other starters getting into early foul trouble, Williamstown dug itself into an early hole that made it appear like the game was over before halftime. But the Lady Demons came out of the locker room after the intermission focused and on fire, erasing a 20-plus-point deficit to come back and have a chance to tie the game in the final minute of play.

Williamstown, which trailed by only three after one quarter, was down by 19 at the half, 44-25. After cutting into the lead in the third quarter, Williamstown dominated in the final period and

Lady Demons show heart in one-point defeat to Gallatin Co. in season opener

Kennedy hits eight

3-pointers in 30-point performance for WHS

Michaela "Moose" Kennedy (10) puts up a shot with a Gallatin Co. defender coming at her. Kennedy finished with a game-high 30 points, which included eight 3-pointers.

outscored the visiting team 26-11, showing the home-town crowd what they are capable of.

While she was frustrated with the team's sloppy play in the first half, pointing to nervousness as a key factor, Williamstown Coach Kasey Mason had nothing but praise for the Lady Demons' second-half performance.

"I think the first-game jitters is part of it. But we're also still nursing some injuries and have also had some new injuries pop up and that definitely played a role, too," she said. "We had 10 unforced turnovers in the first half, things like dribbling off the foot and bad passes. And while I think some of that comes from it being the first game, I think a lot of that comes from a lack of experience where we had some girls playing a lot of minutes tonight who do not have a lot of varsity experience.

"But I'm very proud of the way we came back," Mason continued. "Like I just told the girls in the locker room, that is definitely something we can build on. I think the way we played in the second half and came back shows people that nobody is ever going to be able to count this team out. We do have some girls who are injured. We do have some girls who have not played a lot of varsity. And for us to fight back the way we did, is a huge statement for how good this team is and a huge statement of the heart this team has."

Sophomore point guard Michaela Kennedy had a monster game for the Lady Demons, scoring a game-high 30 points while hitting eight 3-pointers. She had just nine points in the first half, but scored 21 in the

Katie Cheek (1) goes up for a shot while being fouled by a Gallatin Co. player. Cheek finished with 11 points before fouling out of the game.

second half, including seven 3-pointers. She hit a near-impossible running jumper from behind half court as time expired.

Junior guard Katie Cheek was next for Williamstown with 11 points before fouling out mid-way through the final period. Ashely Marksbury followed with nine points before also fouling out.

Sydney Taylor came up big in her first game as a Lady Demon. The sophomore center scored eight points and grabbed several key rebounds while playing game-changing defense. Eighth-grader Kiki Johnson came off the bench with seven points, including multiple key baskets down the stretch to help Williamstown get back in the game.

Jenna Johnson, Megan Perkins and Haley Howe contributed two points each for the Lady Demons, while Olivia Souder chipped in one.