Lady Cougars Run Record To 15-0 1-11-13

Heritage girls are 15-0 after win over Mitchell

Adversity is a fact of any season and how teams deal with adversity is a big factor in reaching their goals.

The Lady Cougars dealt with some adversity this week with leading scorer (14 points per game) and rebounder (8 rebounds per game) Samm Chandler out of the lineup with an injury in key Western Highlands Conference games with Thomas Jefferson and rival Mitchell High.

With the talented standout on the bench, her teammates on the team stepped up their games to deliver two more wins and help the Lady Cougars improve to 15-0 on the season.
“I think that the whole team stepped up for us this week, especially when we got into some early foul trouble at Mitchell,” Heritage Coach Susie Shelton said after watching her team perform last week without one of its leaders. “This team really pulls for each other and that is one thing that makes them so special, Shelton said.
Heritage opened the week with a blowout win over the Lady Gryphons in a home game on Tuesday night. Chandler went down with an foot injury early in the contest but Lady Cougar guard Kaylon Johnson picked up the slack and delivered a season high 19 points, s which included four three pointers.
The Lady Cougars bolted to an 18-2 lead in the first quarter and Coach Susie Shelton was able to empty her bench early on in the 75-31 victory.
Three other Lady Cougars reached double figures in scoring in the win. Brianna Woody knocked down a variety of shots to finish with 14 points while sophomore Destiny Elkins chipped in 13 points and Nyssa Freeman tallied 11.
It was Freeman who stepped to the forefront in a hard fought win over the Lady Mountaineers in Ledger on Friday night.
Playing before a packed house, Freeman, who is averaging 9 points per game this season, nailed two three points in the first quarter and fueled a Lady Cougar run in the second half that allowed the Lady Cougars to run past the Lady Mountaineers 57-45 and improve to 5-0 in Western Highlands Conference play.
A three pointer by Freeman midway through the third quarter gave Heritage its first double digit lead of the night and allowed the Lady Cougars to open up a working margin on the pesky Mountaineers.
Freeman finished with a season high 28 points to lead Heritage past Mitchell. The Lady Cougars also got a good scoring performance from sophomore center Destiny Elkins who finished with 16 points.
Samm Chandler will miss two important league games this week when talented squads from Avery County and Madison come to Burnsville. The Lady Vikings (7-5) will be in town on Tuesday while the Lady Patriots (12-2) will visit on Friday. Come out and show your support as the Lady Cougars try and remain unbeaten and maintain an upper hand in the race for the league title.
By David Grindstaff
david@wkyk.com

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