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Scoring Troubles Hit Varsity Basketball Girls In Losses
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Lady Cougar Hannah Boyd angles to get around the Hughson defense in Thursday night action on the home court. The varsity basketball girls had a tough week, dropping three contests in league play. Marg Jackson/The Times

Three games on the schedule made for a busy week for Escalon’s varsity basketball girls, and all three went in the books as losses.

The squad has struggled to find the scoring touch this season and the hectic pace this week saw more of the same. They were unable to get a win at home or on the road.

The varsity Lady Cougars opened up play on the road Tuesday, Jan. 21 at Livingston, taking a 57-30 loss. They hung with the host team in the first half, trailing just 25-21 at the break but Livingston came out strong in the second half, outdistancing Escalon with a 20-9 scoring edge in the third quarter. Then the Lady Cougars went completely cold, held off the scoreboard in the fourth quarter as Livingston put another dozen points up.

Thursday, looking to rebound on the home court, Escalon saw visiting Hughson jump out to a 13-3 first quarter lead. They closed the gap a little in the second, trailing 26-14 at the half. A strong second half effort saw Escalon work hard to chip away at the lead and they tied Hughson 10-10 in the third quarter and outscored them in the final frame, 20-16, but it wasn’t enough to pull out the win. Hughson emerged victorious in a 52-44 decision.

Friday, the girls wrapped up the busy week at Hilmar. Neither team had a good shooting night and the game was a low-scoring contest, with Hilmar taking a 39-21 decision off the court.

 

JUNIOR VARSITY

On the road at Livingston to start their week, the JV girls did everything they could but came up just a bit short. Head coach Sam Baez said the final score was Livingston 64, Escalon 59 in a game that went to double overtime.

“We finished the game with three players,” Baez said of the tremendous effort from her team in the Jan. 21 contest.

On Thursday, it was a 45-22 loss for the young squad, hosting Hughson in the EHS gym.

Friday, the girls were back out on the road, traveling to Hilmar. Again, they battled but took the loss, falling by a 46-30 final to the JV Lady Yellowjackets.