Cold Springs' Elizabeth Hill (3) led her team, and the game, with 30 points. / Nick Griffin
HANCEVILLE – The Cold Springs Lady Eagles knocked off Lamar County Thursday afternoon to advance to the final round of the Northwest Regional Tournament at Wallace State. The Lady Eagles scored the game’s first basket and never gave up the lead for entirety of the game, coming out on top 59-41.
Elizabeth Hill was the standout for Cold Springs, leading the game in points, rebounds, blocks and assists. Hill scored 30, collected seven rebounds, made seven blocks and dished out five assists in the win. She also knocked down 10 of 11 attempts from the free-throw line.
The Lady Eagles made 16 of their 21 free-throw attempts and those points went a long way in maintain the lead over the Lady Bulldogs. Defensively, Cold Springs was able to hold Lamar County to just 31 percent shooting from the floor, allowing its offense to start pulling away late in the third quarter.
Three-point shooting was an asset for Cold Springs as well. While the Lady Eagles only shot 37 percent from behind the line, they got 3-point baskets in key moments to control the momentum of the game. Two of the Lady Eagles’ biggest deep shots came from Camryn Crider in the final minute of the third quarter, giving Cold Springs a 45-33 lead to start the final quarter of play. Crider finished with 15 points, hitting four shots from 3-point range and also creating two steals on the defensive end of the floor.
Offensive rebounds were also a big advantage for Cold Springs. The Lady Eagles came up with 16 offensive boards, allowing them to extend possessions and get plenty of second shot opportunities.
Lamar County’s Savannah Sudduth got some big baskets in the second half that allowed the Lady Bulldogs to hang around, but the Lady Eagles were able to smother their offense for most of the fourth quarter and held Lamar County scoreless for the final two minutes of the game. Sudduth led Lamar County offensively with 18 points and hit four shots from beyond the arc.
The Lady Eagles will look to keep building momentum and continue their play-off run when they head back to Tom Drake Coliseum to face Phil Campbell Monday at 3 p.m. in the round of eight.
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