Lady Panthers roll onward

Posted 12/22/09

“It's nice to have things we need to improve and still be doing well,” Danforth said.

Powell enters the Christmas break with a 7-0 record overall, 3-0 in Class 3A West.

On Saturday, the Lady Panthers found themselves in the unusual …

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Lady Panthers roll onward

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The games may have been a bit closer, but the end results were the same.The Powell High School girls basketball team racked up two more wins last week, beating Lovell (39-32) and Buffalo (50-46) to continue an unbeaten season.“I think we're getting better at every position,” said PHS head coach Luke Danforth, who said he's been generally pleased with his team's performance thus far.

“It's nice to have things we need to improve and still be doing well,” Danforth said.

Powell enters the Christmas break with a 7-0 record overall, 3-0 in Class 3A West.

On Saturday, the Lady Panthers found themselves in the unusual position of trailing. About halfway through the first quarter, the Buffalo Lady Bison (3-3) had put the Lady Panthers in a 5-2 hole.

But after two Leslie Thronburg free throws, Hannah Pollart sunk a basket to give Powell a 6-5 lead that the visiting Lady Bison would not reclaim.

Savannah Donarski made two baskets to make it 10-5 PHS at the end of the first quarter.

In the second, Buffalo battled back to draw even at 14, 16, and 18, but the Lady Panthers answered with a 7-2 run, closing the half with a 27-20 lead.

In the third quarter, Buffalo remained within striking distance, drawing within 30-29 with 2:44 left in the period.

Pollart responded with a 3-pointer to give the Lady Panthers some breathing room.

The lead swelled again to seven points, when, after a methodic minute-long game of keep-away, the Lady Panthers found an open Kami Cooley on the perimeter. She nailed a 3-pointer just before the third quarter buzzer to make it 38-31.

But in the fourth, Buffalo battled back once again, brining the score to 41-39 with 3:36 left to play.

The score stayed there until the 1:03 mark. Then, following a PHS free throw miss, Pollart grabbed the offensive rebound, sunk a basket and drew a foul. She completed the 3-point play at the free-throw line to make it 44-39.

With a basket from Cooley, and two free throws apiece from Pollart and Donarski, the Lady Panthers held on in the final minute for a 50-46 victory.

Scoring for PHS in the game were Pollart (21 points, 11 rebounds), Donarski (10 points, 14 rebounds), Cooley (7 points), Thronburg (6), Rogers (4), and Katie Kipp (2).

On Thursday, the Lady Panthers took down their former 3A rivals, the Lovell Lady Bulldogs, now in Class 2A.

Against LHS (6-3) in Lovell, Powell got off to a quick first half start.

The Lady Panthers built up a 15-point, 25-10 lead in the second quarter, but the Lady Bulldogs didn't give up. In the closing minutes of the half, and through the third quarter, Lovell went on a 14-4 run.

During a third period plagued by turnovers, Powell was able to attempt just three shots and by the start of the fourth, PHS' lead had been cut to five.

But Powell did not allow Lovell to get any closer than that, staving off the Lady Bulldogs for a 39-32 win.

Scoring for Powell were Pollart (12 points, 11 rebounds), Donarski (8 points, 10 rebounds), Olivia Rogers (7 points), Thronburg (6), Kipp (4), and Cooley (2).

After a three-week break from competition, the Lady Panthers will resume play on Jan. 8, on the road in Mountain View.

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