Mansfield Lady Lions take second in Gainesville tourney

The Mansfield Lady Lions’ basketball team nearly became the sixth Wright County team to win a tournament championship this season when they competed in the Second Annual Gainesville Lady Bulldog Holiday Tournament.
They first knocked off Bakersfield, the No. 1 overall seed, and then defeated the host team to reach the finals.
Unfortunately, they ran into a solid Seymour squad and fell 51-41 to earn the second place hardware.
“…It was a positive experience for the team overall,” said Mansfield head coach Sam Appleby. “We went 2-1, beat a couple good teams and had the opportunity to play for a championship in a really fun environment. We’re disappointed about not winning, but it’s a lesson to be learned and we’re on to the next.”
Against the Lady Tigers, the Lady Lions’ offense struggled out of the gate, scoring just three points in the first eight minutes.
They were down 12 and could not overcome Seymour’s second 15-point quarter as they trailed 30-12 at halftime.
Mansfield responded to the challenge with a 19-point third quarter as Gentry Alsup made two, 3-pointers. Haven Tripp had five points and Elly Williams scored four as the Lady Lions cut the lead to 10 points.
They traded buckets with Seymour in the final frame, but were not able to close the gap in the loss.
Alsup scored nine points; All-Tournament selection Cali Lemons and Williams each scored eight points; both Addie Jones and Tripp had six points; while both Chloe Napier and Kayley Kingery scored two points.
In the opening contest, the Lady Lions drew the top seed in Bakersfield and simply dominated them in a 48-33 victory.
Mansfield’s defense held the No. 1 seed to 11 points or less in all four quarters.
The offense had a 16-5 run to open the game with the help of Lemons’ seven points and six from Tripp.
Bakersfield did rally to cut the lead to six points at halftime.
Both Lemons and Williams combined to score 14 of their team’s 17 points in the third quarter and the Lady Lions never looked back in the win.
Mansfield made 12-of-20 free throws in the second half to seal the victory.
Tripp finished with a team-high 17 points; Lemons added 14; both Jones and Williams scored six points; both Alsup and Napier had two points; and Kingsley scored one point.
Against Gainesville, the Lady Lions’ defense held the host team to nine points or less in all four quarters to pick up a 34-26 win.
Lemons scored six points in a 13-point first quarter.
Alsup made a big 3-pointer in a tough second quarter as the Lady Lions led 18-14 at the break.
Williams would score five points in a 10-point third quarter before Mansfield held on late for the win.
Lemons scored 12 points; both Williams and Jones had seven points; Tripp added five points; while Alsup scored three points.
Before the tournament, the Lady Lions fell in overtime to rival Ava, 71-65.
Mansfield led by four points at halftime, but couldn’t get the game from going into an extra session. The Lady Bears outscored them 11-5 to pick up the win.
Tripp scored 21 points; Lemons had 15; Williams added 14; Jones had 12; and Alsup had three points.
Mansfield ended last week with a big Summit Conference win over Conway, 54-33.
They were up 47-40 through three quarters before holding on for the win.
Tripp had a monster game. She scored 12 of the Lady Lions’ 18 points in the second quarter. She would go on to score 29 points in the win.
Kingery had 10 points; Lemons added nine points; Jones finished with three points;  and Williams had two points.