By By Rocky Higginbotham/The Meridian Star
Feb. 24, 2001
BOGUE CHITTO For a squad which sports only one senior, Lake's girls have shown quite a bit of maturity this season.
They did so again Friday night, when the Lady Hornets qualified for a trip to the Big House.
Lake coasted on offense most of the night and rolled up an 86-71 win over Durant here in the Class 1A South State Girls Tournament at Bogue Chitto High School.
The Lady Hornets, who are now 31-3 on the season, move into tonight's 8 p.m. South State championship game against host Bogue Chitto. Win or lose, coach Bill Ingersoll's squad has now qualified for the Class 1A State Tournament at the Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson.
Bogue Chitto knocked off McAdams 83-74 in Friday's other game. The Lady Bobcats are 23-8.
Lake put up 25 points in the first quarter alone Friday and led 41-33 at halftime.
The third quarter was more of the same, as the Lady Hornets erupted for 26 points and carried a 16-point cushion into the final period of play.
Durant, the defending Class 1A state runnerup, kept it close behind the performance of the Howard sisters Ashley and Monchel. But Lake never lost its composure, a trait even that impresses even Ingersoll.
The team's lone senior, Odena Cox, scored 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds, and as Ingersoll put it "not bad for a two-guard."
Sophomore Kim Cox lit up Durant for 28 points and five assists, while junior Kimyatta Viverette scored 25 points, grabbed 14 rebounds and had four steals.
Sophomore Roxana Rogers threw in 16 points and had three steals, while freshman April Viverette pulled down 10 rebounds.
Ashley Howard's 23 points led Durant, while Monchel Howard had 21 as the Lady Tigers fell to 21-11.
Rocky Higginbotham is the sports editor of The Meridian Star. E-mail him at rhigginbotham@themeridianstar.com.