Lady Jays pass stiff road test against rival Sterling
No. 4 Tabor gains upper hand early in KCAC supremacy, knocking off 11th-ranked Lady Warriors, 70-64
By RYAN RICHTER
Sports writer
If the Lady Bluejays are going to indeed repeat as KCAC champion, they know their road to the title runs through the Sterling Lady Warriors.
The Bluejays had to trip the reigning champs a year ago in the league finals to capture Tabor's first title since the early '90s and coach Rusty Allen's first.
But Tabor (7-3, 2-0 KCAC) took its first big step Saturday in gaining some league supremacy, upending the Lady Warriors in Sterling, 70-64.
The Bluejays led by as many as 12 in the first half before the Warriors came charging back to close the gap to 30-26, despite hitting a cool 32 percent from the field.
As a good team is expected to do, the Warriors made a surge late in the game, overcoming a double-digit lead by Tabor to get to within a point.
Behind a double-double of 17 points, 10 rebounds, Emily Vogts made some pivotal baskets down the stretch which allowed the Bluejays to hang on.
Bluejay forward Donya Anderson led all scorers with 19 points, finishing three rebounds short of another double-double.
The duo also each ended with three steals a piece, almost fouling out.
Stacie Herman scored 14 points while dishing out a game-high nine assists.
Beating the Warriors, slowing down standout Taylor White is a must.
White still finished with a team-high 17 points, but cold shooting neutralized her as the Bluejays limited Sterling to 40 percent from the floor and a worthless 23 percent from long range off 30 attempts.
The Bluejays finished with 44 percent overall and 42 percent from three-point range, narrowly falling in the rebounding battle, 43-42 with the Warriors getting the edge offensively with 15.
Up next for the Bluejays is a Thursday night game in Winfield against the Southwestern Lady 'Builders with a 6 p.m. tip-off.
