WWW arkcity.net

By DAVID WOLMAN
Traveler Sports Editor
sports@arkcity.net

For the first 34 minutes of Wednesday evening's game, Cowley College sleep walked and appeared worn out, despite a three-day layoff.

Surprisingly, the Lady Tigers found themselves holding a lead for most of that span.

Then came the wake up call the Lady Tigers needed -- and it took just two sequences to take control of the game.

Elena Yankova took one glance down court and lobbed a baseball pass over the heads of Allen County's defense to Lauren Cherry, who went in for an easy layup.

On the ensuing possession, Yankova picked off a pass near midcourt and again found Cherry for another layup.

Suddenly, the Lady Tigers found the energy it lacked throughout most of the game and used it to finish on a 17-6 run and pull away for a 56-36 win over Allen County at W.S. Scott Auditorium.

Cowley College coach Todd Clark conceded that his team mentally thought it was tired.

"We just did a lot of silly things," Clark said. "And that's part of being tired. We think we're too tired. Hopefully, we'll snap out of it."

The Lady Tigers fell behind 9-4 to start the game. Joanna Ortiz scored the first five points, burying a three-pointer to open the scoring and then connecting on a free-throw line jumper.

Ortiz finished with 11 points and four rebounds before fouling out with just over two minutes remaining in the game. Jennifer Willis added 10 points and seven rebounds.

Cowley (14-9, 9-2 Jayhawk East) committed several careless turnovers in the game.

Yankova hung onto the ball too long on one possession in the first half, as the Lady Tigers were subsequently called for a shot clock violation. Also sprinkled in were an over and back call on Whitney Williams, a Chloe Nelson steal off a trap and several bad entry passes by the Lady Tigers.

"It was a lot of dumb things that we did," Clark said.

Yet, the Lady Tigers somehow managed to rally from an early deficit and take the lead for good on a Williams turnaround jumper just over midway through the first half.

Williams used her 6-foot-3 frame and quick feet to take advantage of a smaller Allen County front court, hitting several turnaround jump shots and grabbing loose rebounds.

Williams scored 10 of her game-high 18 points in the first half, including Cowley's last six before intermission. She also pulled down 12 rebounds.

"Her teammates did a good job finding her," Clark said. "She got a lot more touches. That was something we talked about before (the game)."

Williams hit a jumper with the shot clock running down for a 25-18 Cowley lead at halftime.

Sloppy play dominated the first 10 minutes of the second half. Both teams committed several ill-advised turnovers, slowing down a game in which offense suddenly came at a premium.

Allen County (10-13, 3-8) finished with 20 turnovers, while Cowley had 18.

The Lady Tigers led for the last 30 minutes of the game, but were unable to build more than an 11-point lead.

Then came the spark the Lady Tigers had desperately needed. It was like an alarm clock went off in Cowley's heads.

Yankova's two heads-up plays midway through the second half (baseball pass to Cherry and steal) helped Cowley to gain the energy it needed to pull away from Allen County.

Yankova said that, on her baseball pass to Cherry, was a set play that Cowley works on daily in practice.

"We use usually it against teams that pressure us," Yankova said. "It's easy for the players to run down court."

She said that Wednesday was the third time the play had been successful this season -- and it helped to energize the Lady Tigers.

Cherry's layup gave Cowley a 41-30 lead with 6:03 remaining -- and its lead kept building.

"Bebe" Holloway keyed the Lady Tigers' effort on the glass. She finished with nine rebounds, including six offensive rebounds.

She hit a short putback off a Williams miss for a 48-34 Cowley lead. Holloway added 10 points and five assists.

"That's a kid who can give us a lot of energy," Clark said of Holloway.

Holloway also took a charge on Ortiz with 2 1/2 minutes remaining. Holloway initially appeared stunned, thinking the foul was going to be called on her, but after the officials convened they tagged Ortiz with the foul.

Gabbie Curtis added 11 points and Lauren Cherry 10 points and six rebounds.

Cowley dominated on the glass, finishing with a 45-20 rebounding advantage, including 19-5 on the offensive end. The Lady Tigers also had 14 assists on 23 field goals.

Box score:

Allen County: Ortiz 5-11 0-0 11; Williams 4-12 2-2 10; Aofia 3-6 0-0 7; Johnson 3-14 0-2 6; Fisher 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 16-49 2-4 36.

Cowley: Williams 8-16 2-5 18; Curtis 5-14 1-2 11; Holloway 5-14 1-2 11; Cherry 4-7 2-2 10; Yankova 2-10 1-4 5; Robinson 1-1 0-1 2. Totals 23-59

Halftime -- Cowley 25, Allen County 18. Three's -- Allen County 2-14 (Ortiz, Aofia); Cowley 0-0. Rebounds -- Allen County 20 (Willis 7); Cowley 45 (Williams 12). Assists -- Allen County: 8 (Johnson 2, Ortiz 2); Cowley: 14 (Holloway 5). Technicals: none.