Lady Wildcats win three of four in Holiday Tournament
The Licking Lady Wildcats entered the 12-team Mountain Grove Holiday Tournament as the number six seed and faced 11th-seed Houston in the first round on Monday, December 22.
Two weeks after defeating the Houston Lady Tigers on their home court, the Lady Wildcats were victorious again, with a lopsided score of 70-40. Almost all Licking players who took the floor had a hand in scoring.
In the quarterfinal round of the tournament, Licking faced third-seed Dixon. Dixon defeated Licking in the Frisco League Tournament 44-41 at the end of November. The Lady Wildcats were determined to change the outcome, and in a physical, defense-dominated game, Licking trailed by six at the half, 17-23. By the end of the third quarter, the Lady Wildcats had closed the gap to four, and with five minutes left on the game clock, Licking tied up the game, 34-34. Dixon regained the lead, but Licking was able to keep it to a one-shot game. Dixon was able to seal the game when they hit two free throws with six seconds remaining, giving them a four-point lead. A three-pointer connected for Keely Gorman in the final seconds, but Licking fell a point short, losing 44-45.
The semi-final round on Friday matched Licking against fifth-seed Bunker, and the Lady Wildcats were once again victorious, 49-35, advancing to the fifth place final against fourth seed Alton on Saturday.
The Lady Wildcats and the Alton Lady Comets ended regulation play with a tie, but Licking persevered and pulled out a 47-44 win in overtime, claiming the fifth place title. Keely Gorman scored 14 points, Addison Floyd was also in double digits with 11 points, Hadlee Davis added 8, Penelope Huff had 7, Bailee Medlock gave 3, and Kylee Rinne and Jayde Thompson both scored 2 points in the win.
The Lady Wildcats finished the tournament with three wins and defeated two teams seeded higher than them in the tournament. Their only loss was to the tournament’s second-place winner, Dixon, by a single point. After a week off, the Lady Wildcats will travel to Iberia on January 5.
