WINNSBORO – Ben Lippen handed the Richard Winn Lady Eagles a loss in the opening round of the Richard Winn Christmas Tournament, but the team turned things around on day two. The Eagles hosted the Providence Athletic Club in their second match-up, and they thumped the Panthers for a 61-24 win.
Taylor Spires (15) attempts to slash past a defender in last week’s game against Ben Lippen.
Taylor Spires led the charge against PAC, and recorded a stat-stuffing triple-double. Spires tallied 24 points on the night, with 16 rebounds and ten steals. Gracie Atkerson had 11 points and knocked down three shots from behind the arc.
The big win not only put a highlight on the RWA Christmas Tournament, but it also set up the Eagles for a nice run at the Newberry Academy Christmas Tournament over the weekend. Richard Winn’s lethal combination of Taylor Spires and Gracie Atkerson helped the Eagles score an opening victory against Greenwood Christian.
Spires had a game high 18 points, and Atkerson had 15 in the 40-30 win over the Lady Hawks. Not one player for Greenwood Christian cracked the double-digit point plateau, and the smothering Richard Winn defense held them below seven points in the first and third quarter. The Eagles knocked six three-pointers in the game. Atkerson had three.
Richard Winn’s strong defensive play carried over into their day-two matchup against the Curtis Baptist Lady Crusaders from Augusta Georgia. The Crusaders found no offensive rhythm in the match-up, and RWA prevailed with a 44-23 victory.
Hannah Gibbons had an impressive performance. She ripped up the Crusaders’ defense for 13 points and led all scorers. Atkerson was close behind Gibbons. She had 12 points, six of which came from behind the arc. Spires had 10 points, completing the three-game span with 52 points. Once again, the Eagles defense did not allow a double-digit scorer.
RWA – 11-9-10-10 – 40
GCA – 6-9-3-12 – 30
RWA: Taylor Spires 18, Gracie Atkerson 15, Hannah Gibbons 4, Kaitlyn Thoma 3
GCA: Alex Langley 8, Kimberly Miller 6, Danielle Rankin 5, Caroline Hinzman 4, Kennedy Kaltz 3, Spencer Abrams 2, Kelita Collier 2
RWA – 10-12-9-13 – 44
CB – 4-8-6-5 – 23
RWA: Ginnons 13, Atkerson 12, Spires 10, Mikaela Miller 4, Rayne Williams 3, Thoma 2
CB: Celia Ulrich 7, Angel Tilton 6, Jordan Ashley Johnson 5, Elise Ulrich 2, Natalie Cabit 2, Lainey Jainniney 1
