Lady Broncos fall to Northwest, rally in next two games

Despite a good start against Northwest Christian on Tuesday, Jan. 6, the Lady Broncos fell behind their opponent, losing the game 73-47.

After the first quarter the LRS team trailed the Lady Crusaders 23-16.

However, they struggled to match Northwest Christian’s scoring in the second and third quarters, putting up 14 points to the Lady Crusaders’ 36.

In the fourth quarter, the Lady Broncos regained their composure but were unable to make up the deficit scoring 17 points to the Lady Crusaders’ 14.

Tessa Jantz led the team in scoring with 13 points and eight rebounds. Tommi Swannack also put up 11 points during the game.

The Lady Broncos then traveled to Davenport where they squared off with the Lady Gorillas.

After outscoring the Lady Gorillas 17-11 in the first quarter the Lady Broncos would trail 26-24 at halftime.

They closed the Davenport lead to one point in a low scoring third quarter and rallied in the fourth.

Jenna Bennett hit a critical free throw in the final seconds of the game, which put the Lady Broncos up three points over their opponent.

They finished the game 47-44 over the Lady Gorillas.

Swannack led the Lady Broncos on offense in the game with 14 points and eight rebounds. High scorers for the team also included Bennett with 11 points and Mallory Kessler with 10.

The Lady Broncos then faced the Springdale Lady Chargers on Saturday, Jan. 10, and took control of the game early.

After the first quarter the Lady Broncos led the Lady Chargers 26-8.

The Lady Chargers slowly chipped away at the LRS lead during the second quarter.

While the Lady Broncos maintained a comfortable lead during the game, the team suffered from back-to-back errors in the third quarter.

With the Lady Broncos determining the tempo of the game prior to the half, the Lady Chargers refused to give up and forced the Lady Broncos to have multiple turnovers.

After a few early quarter steals leading to break away points for Springdale, head coach John Galbreath took a time out to refocus the Lady Broncos’ energy.

The team took advantage of multiple mix-match situations created by Springdale’s defense, and had consistent open looks at the hoop.

The Lady Broncos battled to the baseline on offensive drives, scoring on lay-in opportunities or kicking the ball out to an open perimeter player.

The Lady Broncos found success offensively by remaining aggressive and having consistent ball movement to throw Springdale’s man coverage off balance.

The Lady Broncos maintained their lead throughout the fourth quarter when they iced their opponents for a 69-48 win.

Jantz racked up 21 points during the evening. Kessler put up a further 10 points and Swannack recorded a double-double, putting up 16 points and grabbing 11 rebounds for the Lady Broncos.

The Lady Broncos faced the Wilbur-Creston Wildcats on Tuesday night and will travel to Reardan to face the Lady Indians on Jan. 17.

The LRS team returns to Gilson Gym on Tuesday, Jan. 20, to host Connell.