On track, Hornets rout Church Point, Sanchez scores 18
Published 1:33 pm Friday, December 17, 2021
- Hathaway’s Lamiyah Sanchez battles in the lane with Church Point’s A’Kirra Hagger during a game at the Iowa/Mallett Builders tournament on Thursday. Sanchez scored a game-high 18. (Kirk Meche / Special to the American Press)
IOWA — After consecutive runner-up finishes in Class B, the Hathaway Hornets are on a mission to bring home the girls basketball state championship this season.
With 18 wins in 19 games to start the season, the Hornets are on track. Thursday, they blitzed Church Point 60-11 at the Iowa/ Mallett Builders tournament to earn a spot in the semifinal round against Barbe at 5 p.m. today.
Lamiyah Sanchez scored 10 points in the first quarter as the Hornets raced to a 23-0 lead. Her work on the other end of the court this season is what has caught the eye of head coach Courtnee Young.
“She has made tremendous strides since last season,” Young said. “Everyone knows she can score. Now that she has picked her defense up she is an allaround player. I look forward to watching her every day.”
Sanchez drilled a pair of 3-pointers in the first four minutes of the game as the Hornets stifled Church Point (7-6) with their pressure defense. She finished with a team-high 18 points. All but two came in the first half as Hathaway built a 39-point lead in the first half.
The Hornets will get a big test today against the Bucs (6-4), who feature a pair of big scorers in Mikaylah Manley and Areil Williams.
Young said she is more concerned with the Hornets level of play than results
“I’m hoping to get wins, obviously winning is important, but as long as we are getting better, that is the most important thing, especially against 5A and other big schools we play,” Young said.
“Our focus is getting better every day, working hard in practice first and foremost. We are continuing to stick to the mission. The objective is to get to what our goals are and I think they have a good mindset right now, they are playing hard.”
Sienna Miller added 10 points for the Hornets while Chloey Guidry scored
10. A’kirra Haggard scored four to lead Church Point.
Barbe advanced to the semifinal round with a 41-37 opening round win over Bell City. Williams and Manley each scored 17 for the Bucs.
Welsh will face DeRidder in the other semifinal at 3:40 p.m. In the boys bracket, Iowa will play Acadiana at 6:20 p.m., followed by Elton vs. Hathaway.
