WP Girls Bowl Over Irish

WALLA WALLA - The Lady Cardinals walked on to the Irish courts tied with the rival team 3-0 in the league Friday night. When WP walked away, they left with their heads held high as they took the lead 45-34 and now stand 4-0 in the league.

"Any time you come down to DeSales and win a game, it is a big accomplishment," head coach Jerry Baker said. "Any time you play DeSales it is always going to be a battle."

Baker knew what he was talking about after the game Friday night.

"DeSales gave us the most problem we've had all year." Baker said minutes after the game. "They were the quickest team we have dealt with all year."

Krystal Harris, Alyssa Hafen, Kristen Potter, Megan Withers and Genesis Pearson went onto the court pumped up and ready to go. But still it wasn't quite enough for their coach.

"They (WP) didn't work as hard as the other team did," Baker said. "We had a lot of problems with their press. But we did have a couple of really good turnovers that definitely helped us in the first half."

Nine of the girls scored Saturday night. Pearson made 16 points and had 12 rebounds.

"We got the ball moving around," Baker said. "It was good to see everyone get into the action."

Ronnie Hulce, a junior, said things could have got underway better.

"We started out really soft," Hulce said. "Once we got into the game, things picked up."

The team knew they would need to do something better to win this game. "Offense was it," Hulce said. "After winning this game, we definitely have more confidence within ourselves."

That confidence came into play the next day at Tri-Cities Prep. WP had no problem with this game, wining 50- 23.

Younger girls, like sophomore Samantha Moss, got a lot more playing time and more experience to put under their belt.

"I put in my younger girls with the older players so that they could get the experience with them out on the court in a high-pressure game," Baker said. "I'll do that from time to time, when the defense is good."

The Lady Cardinals held the Jaguars on double digits at every quarter.

The team will work hard to get ready for its upcoming home game this Friday against Liberty Christian. Outside shooting will be one of the main focuses, Baker said.

"We have a lot of great shooters, but we need to learn to look for the shot," Baker said. "They need to be ready to shoot when they get the ball."

The next home game will be big, Baker said. "They beat us both times last year, they were league champs. We have to step up to the plate and see if we can compete."

Saturday, WP travels to Dayton to face the Bulldogs.

LADY CARDINALS

WP vs. DeSales (Jan 14) 45-34

WP 6 12 17 10 45

DeSales7912634

WP (45): Kristin Potter 12, Krystal Harris 7, Ronnie Hulce 8, Megan Withers 8, Genesis Pearson 10.

WP vs. Tri-Cities Prep (Jan 15) 50-23

WP 7 17 12 13 50

TCP685423

WP (50): Kristen Potter 2, Kayla Huxoll 1, Krystal Harris 5, Alyssa Hafen 6, Ronnie Hulce 1, Megan Withers 5, Genesis Pearson 16, Katy Hofer 2, Dionna Baker 10.