HENDERSON, Tenn. – The #3 Lady Tigers battled the #23 Freed-Hardeman Lady Lions on their second straight game down in Tennessee. After trailing the Lady Lions for most of the game, the Lady Tigers took the victory in the last four minutes of play, 55-52.
Freed-Hardeman scored the first bucket of the contest, claiming an early lead. Both teams exchanged threes, a testament of the high-action flowing on the court. The Lady Lions' baskets, strong both in the paint and beyond the arch, propelled them upward on the advantage, doubling the Lady Tigers on the scoreboard. Despite Campbellsville's attempts to retaliate, Freed-Hardeman proved too strong in the early stages of the contest. At the end of the first ten minutes of play, the Lady Tigers trailed the Lady Lions, 19-10.
Courtney Pritchett opened the second period with a three-pointer, setting foot for Campbellsville to catch Freed-Hardeman's lead. The following minutes of the contest unfolded with low-offensive action, both teams collecting multiple defensive rebounds and turnovers, but only a couple baskets in each's favor. Lauren Lee brought the Lady Tigers within a point of the upper-hand, closing the first half 29-28.
At the half, both teams remained really close to one another in most statistical aspects of the game. One significant difference throughout the first half was Campbellsville capitalizing off their offensive rebounds while Freed-Hardeman capitalized off their defensive rebounds.
Much like the first, the Lady Lions made the first basket of the second half. Kaitlynn Wilks quickly retaliated only a few seconds after with a fierce bucket in the paint. Kayla Luebbe came off the bench with an avid jumper, decreasing Campbellsville's deficit on the score. The last three minutes of the third quarter did not result in any successful baskets from either team. Going into the fourth quarter, the Lady Tigers were down by eight points, 44-36.
Luebbe made the first two buckets of the fourth quarter. Campbellsville strongly capitalized off their multiple opportunities at the charity stripe, racking up points upon points for the Lady Tigers. Halfway through the last quarter of play, Lee's nimble back-to-back jumpers earned Campbellsville their first lead of the game. Another three-point bucket by Pritchett continued to propel the Lady Tigers forward, preserving their lead in the closing minutes of the contest. Maddy Nalley's late-game defensive rebound off a Lady Lion layup and then Pritchett's subsequent free throws gave Campbellsville the victory over Freed-Hardeman, 55-52.
The Lady Tigers' rotation proved superior throughout the contest, collecting 22 bench points compared to the Lady Lions' 14. Campbellsville stole the victory from Freed-Hardeman despite holding the lead for 11% of the game compared to their 88.1%. Three Lady Tigers made double digits throughout the game: Lee with 17 points, Pritchett with 12, and Luebbe with ten.
The Lady Tigers will be back in action, hosting the Georgetown Tigers on Thursday, February 22nd beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET.
