Watauga girls strong from deep to take down Huskies, 57-45

The Watauga ladies came out of the gate with their long-shots dialed in, as all nine points came from treys by Laurel Kiker, Charlotte Torgerson and Kate Sears. By the end of the night, Sears had a game-high 17 points, while Torgerson tallied 14.

Ashe County's 6'0" forward Paige Overcash helped her team keep pace, as she netted 6 points in the quarter to keep the margin tight, as the Pioneers led 9-8 going into the second period. Overcash finished the game tied for a team-high 13 points.

In the second quarter, Watauga's offense exploded as six Pioneers collected made buckets and five of them drained 3-pointers. Kiker, Torgerson and Sears each nailed another triple, while Kaitlyn Darner and Brooke Scheffler added shots from downtown, too.

The Pioneer landed nine 3-pointers total in the first half, including six in the second quarter. The wild output from Watauga meant they took a 38-16 lead heading into halftime.

After the break, the Pioneers cooled off somewhat, but their advantage over the Huskies proved insurmountable. Ashe County attempted a comeback, outscoring Watauga by 10 points in the back half of the game.

For the Huskies, Overcash continued her work inside while Abigail Jones (13 points) and Lexie Dawson (9 points) aided elsewhere, narrowing the difference between the sides by five points. By the end of the third frame Watauga led 47-30.

Ashe County closed the gap enough in the fourth quarter to attempt fouls to stop the clock, but Sears and Torgerson went a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line to stymie any surprises from the home team. Watauga's Kiker and Julie Matheson garnered baskets as well to staunchly stop Ashe's efforts, as the Pioneers walked away winners, 57-45.

Next up on the docket for the Pioneers are the South Caldwell Spartans (9-10, 0-5) who Watauga defeated 60-34 away in Hudson, North Carolina back on Jan. 1. This reverse conference fixture will be played at Lentz-Eggers Gymnasium on Friday, Jan. 27, with a start time set for 6:30 p.m.

Scoring  1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q F

Watauga  9 29 9 1 57

Ashe Co.  8 8 14 15 45

Watauga stats:

• Kate Sears — 17 pts, 4 reb, 9 ast, 1 stl
• Charlotte Torgerson — 14 pts, 2 reb, 4 ast
• Brooke Scheffler — 9 pts, 1 reb, 1 stl
• Laurel Kiker — 8 pts, 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 stl
• Kaitlyn Darner — 5 pts, 4 reb
• Julie Matheson — 4 pts, 1 reb
• Caroline Farthing — 6 reb, 4 ast, 2 stl

Ashe County stats (scores only):

• Abigail Jones — 13 pts
• Paige Overcash — 13 pts
• Lexie Dawson — 9 pts
• Abby Eller —6 pts
• Morgan Phipps — 3 pts
• Ally Greer — 1 pt