Lady Rockets hang tough versus Columbia Central

Anthony S. Puca Sports Editor
Posted 11/24/20

The Forrest Lady Rockets are trying to gel after the loss of star senior Carissa Curtis and after a season opening loss to Huntland, the Chapel Hill girls took on a very good Columbia Central team at home on Friday night.

“Anytime you lose a great, experienced player like Carissa Curtis it is going to be difficult,” Forrest coach Corey Bishop said. “But, I have a lot of confidence in our team and they are working extremely hard at practice and in the games.”

“We think everyone is going to improve from practice to practice and game to game.”

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Lady Rockets hang tough versus Columbia Central

Posted

The Forrest Lady Rockets are trying to gel after the loss of star senior Carissa Curtis and after a season opening loss to Huntland, the Chapel Hill girls took on a very good Columbia Central team at home on Friday night.

“Anytime you lose a great, experienced player like Carissa Curtis it is going to be difficult,” Forrest coach Corey Bishop said. “But, I have a lot of confidence in our team and they are working extremely hard at practice and in the games.”

“We think everyone is going to improve from practice to practice and game to game.”

The Lady Lions came out roaring, putting up a huge 21-point first quarter as Forrest struggled with only eight points on offense.

Forrest gave an outstanding effort in trying to come back, but fell short 52-46.

“This early in the season we as a coaching staff are looking for total and complete effort from the start of the game until the end,” Bishop said. “Right now, I believe we are starting games out kinda slow and then we start to ramp things up as the game goes on.”

“As time progresses, we need and are going to begin putting complete games together.”

Riley Hamm had a pair of 3-pointers and the game’s leading scorer Josie Parks (19 points) had one trey in the opening period barrage for Columbia Central.

Jalei O’Neal scored 11 points, Janiyah Riley netted eight, Hamm ended up with just the two early three’s, Saviya Morgan added four points, and Anaya Mulholland and Karma Hunt had two points apiece for Central.

The Lady Lions (2-0) also won the second period, outscoring Forrest 12-8 to take a big 33-16 lead at the half.

Forrest senior Laura Mealer had another outstanding game, leading the Lady Rockets in the scoring column with 18 points, including one 3-pointer and a solid 7-for-9 effort from the free throw line.

“Laura is playing great basketball, especially on the defensive end,” Bishop said. “We believe that if she plays to her full potential in basketball that she is one of the best players in our region.”

Macyn Kirby, whose playing time has increased exponentially with the loss of Curtis had her second solid game in a row to start the season as the sophomore scored 12 points and drilled a pair of 3-pointers.

Alex Davenport chipped in with seven points, Sam Hopkins came off the bench and had four points in the low post, Addison Bunty scored three points, and Carli Warner had a deuce for Forrest.

The Lady Rockets (0-2) began to right the ship in the third period, outscoring Columbia Central 12-11 as Mealer gutted out six points, including a buzzer beating 3-pointer from beyond half court and Davenport came up with a pair of field goals in the stanza.

Kirby led a 19-point fourth quarter charge with seven points for the Lady Rockets, who held the Lady Lions to seven points in the period and cut an 18-point third quarter deficit to just six by game’s end.

The two teams will meet again right after the Thanksgiving break on December 1 at Central with tipoff scheduled for 6 p.m.

Columbia 21 12 12 7-52

Forrest 8 8 11 19-46

Columbia (52): Josie Parks 19, Jalei O’Neal 11, Janiyah Riley 8, Ryleigh Hamm 6, Saviya Morgan 4, Anaya Mulholland 2, Karma Hunt 2.

Three-Point Goals (4): Hamm 2, O’Neal, Parks.

Free Throws (6-for-8): Hunt 2-for-2, Riley 2-for-2, O’Neal 2-for-2, Morgan 0-for-2.

Forrest (46): Laura Mealer 18, Macyn Kirby 12, Alex Davenport 7, Sam Hopkins 4, Addison Bunty 3, Carli Warner 2.

Three-Point Goals (3): Kirby 2, Mealer.

Free Throws (9-for-13): Mealer 7-for-9, Alex Davenport 1-for-2, Bunty 1-for-2.

Halftime Score: Columbia Central 33, Forrest 16.