Womens Basketball
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Lady Tigers Win a Defensive Battle

Hot Springs, Ark.

The Lady Tigers again had to battle back from a early deficit, turnover and foul trouble to win a defensive struggle over the visiting Lady Royals of Ecclesia. 

The first quarter saw the Lady Royals pound the ball inside forcing early fouls resulting in 13 free throw attempts in the first 10 minutes while shooting 5-10 from the floor. Champion struggled out of the gates with 8 first quarter turnovers, but were able to fight through and keep the game close trailing 17-14 at the end of the first. 

The second quarter saw the Lady Tigers commit to the defensive end, holding Ecclesia to 5-14 shooting and 2-11 from 3 point land. Allowing Champion to cut the lead to 2 at the intermission. 

Third quarter was a repeat of the second quarter both teams struggled offensively and foul trouble mounting. Ecclesia went into the fourth quarter up 3. 

The fourth quarter was much of the same defensively for the Lady Tigers holding the Lady Royals to 4-20 in the quarter, while offensively shooting 8-16 from the floor. Ecclesia was able to stay in the game thanks to untimely turnovers from the Lady Tigers and foul trouble, allowing the Lady Royals to 8 free throws in the final quarter, but Champion found a way to hold on and excape with a 63-61 victory. 

Destiny Gonzale led the Lady Tigers with a double-double, scoring 19 points on 8-16 shooting and grabbing 12 boards. Harria Mendoza added 12 points and 9 rebounds in her home debut, while Nay Manning added 9 points, 9 assists and 4 rebounds. Ecclesia's Gracie Crawford led all scorers with 24 points.