In a preview of the upcoming Sparta 2A Regional semifinals, Pinckneyville used balanced scoring a smart defensive plan to top the Lady Bulldogs on their senior night 65-35 Tuesday.
“We did a pretty nice job of following the scouting report tonight,” said Pinckneyville coach Alan Engelhardt. “I thought we did a nice job of guarding with the exception of hitting the boards. We gave up 25 offensive rebounds, which really helped keep Sparta in the game. We will see them next week in the regional and have to do a much better job on the glass then. This was a nice team win. We did a good job of sharing the basketball, handing out 17 assists and putting ourselves in good positions to shoot a high percentage. We also had different girls step up during different points in the game.”
The first quarter saw the lead change hands five times, but Sparta ended the period with a 6-0 scoring run for an 18-15 advantage.
Jessica Robinson and Rachel Peck each had six points for the Lady Bulldogs, while Maddy Keith and Taylor Cicardi each had six points to lead the early Pinckneyville offense.
The Lady Panthers took control of the game in the second quarter for a 32-20 lead as their defense forced Sparta to shoot from the outside, a move that worked out perfectly for Pinckneyville.
Sparta missed its first eight shots from the field in the second quarter, but regrouped to finish the half with a 5-0 run to trail by only seven points, 32-25 at the break.
Cicardi added six points in the second quarter for Pinckneyville, while Emily Miller knocked down two three-pointers.
Robinson kept her team close by scoring six points in the period.
Lindsey Winter exploded to score 12 points in the third quarter to spark a 15-2 scoring run to give Pinckneyville an 18-point lead, 51-33.
Jade Vaughn hit a pair of outside jumpers to cap off a 5-0 run for Sparta to end the third quarter down by 13 points, 51-38.
Robinson again was Sparta’s main offensive force, scoring eight points in the quarter.
The Lady Bulldogs were able to cut the deficit down to eight points on a couple of occasions in the fourth, but couldn’t cut into the lead any further as Pinckneyville went on for the 65-53 win. The Lady Dawgs struggled shooting the ball fromthe field and from the foul line. Sparta was just 3-of-18 from the free throw line in the loss.
“Maddy Keith had a big first quarter, and Taylor Cicardi and Emily Miller had big first halves,” said Engelhardt. “Then in the second half, Lindsey Winter scored 16 of her 18 points and Dani Jenkel had all 9 of her points. When we have different girls stepping up in different situations, we become very hard to guard. I think we are starting to improve, as we have shown in our last couple of outings.”
Winter finished with a team high 18 points followed by Cicardi with 16 and Miller with 12.
Robinson had 25 points to lead Sparta, while Peck finished with 11.
With the win, Pinckneyville improved to 18-9 overall and 6-3 in conference play.
The loss for Sparta was its second in the conference and dashed all hopes for a share of the conference title with Nashville.
Sparta and Pinckneyville will meet up for the third time this season Tuesday, February 9 at 8 p.m. in the Sparta Regional semifinals. The season series between the two rivals is tied at 1-1.
