After suffering a pair of recent road losses, both Angelina College basketball teams used fuel from a big home crowd to sweep conference wins Wednesday at Shands Gymnasium.
The Lady Roadrunners snapped a three-game losing streak with a 72-50 win over Coastal bend College, and the Roadrunners followed by holding on for an 89-76 win over Jacksonville College.
Lady Roadrunners 72, Coastal Bend 50
Three games ago, the Lady Roadrunners learned they’d be without All-American candidate LaNeique Nealey for the remainder of the season after Nealey suffered an injury. The question arose as to where AC’s ladies would find the double-digit points and rebounds Nealey offered on a nightly basis.
On Wednesday against Coastal Bend College, the Lady ‘Runners learned they can spread the wealth.
Four Lady Roadrunners scored in double figures, with Kennethah Harden leading the way with 18 points. Tyanna Barlow added a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Charisma Shepherd and Erin Sanchez chipped in 10 points each. Karley McHenry added nine points, knocking down a trio of three pointers in the game.
Perhaps most importantly for the Lady Roadrunners was winning the rebounding battle, grabbing a total of 47 boards to the Lady Cougars’ 41. AC also converted 17 of 21 free-throw attempts, with Barlow connecting on seven of her eight tries from the line.
Hadiya Norman led Coastal Bend with 18 points. Marilyn Davis scored 13 points while pulling down 16 rebounds.
The Lady Roadrunners (12-8, 5-5) play at Paris College on Saturday. Game time is 2 p.m.
Roadrunners 89, Jacksonville 76
After seeing Jacksonville’s Jaguars battle back to cut a 17-point lead to just four points with a minute and a half remaining in the game, Angelina College’s Roadrunners needed a big play to stop the bleeding.
They got it from Isaiah Bailey, and he nearly had to bleed to make it.
Bailey battled two Jaguars to rebound his own miss, somehow scoring on an off-balance shot while drawing a hard foul. Bailey converted the bonus free throw, extending AC’s lead to seven points, and the Roadrunners closed out the game with five free throws squeezed around a Corinthian Ramsey bucket to take the 89-76 win.
With the ‘Runners recognizing Kurth Primary and Anderson Elementary School, along with the Lufkin Youth Basketball League, a big crowd jammed Shands Gymnasium for an entertaining game. Both defenses played well in a low-scoring first half – AC led 39-29 at the break – but the Roadrunners easily solved the Jaguars’ full-court press in the second.
Ramsey led all scorers with 22 points, adding three steals to his totals. Bailey added 19 and nine rebounds; Robert Lewis scored 15; and Gary Blackston finished with 12 points. Victor Bell chipped in with 10 points, six rebounds and a pair of steals.
Jacksonville got 16 points from Ben Nakwaasah and 12 points each from Jarrett Henderson and Tevin Townsend.
The Roadrunners (14-6, 6-3) are on the road Saturday, taking on Lee College in Baytown. Game time is 4 p.m.
The e-mail address for AC’s Sports Information Director is gstallard@angelina.edu.
