BY BRITTNI MCCOY
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
INEZ — The Eden Wildcats stayed perfect this week after rolling over Inez, Blaine and Warfield.
Below is a recap of last week’s action:
Eden at Inez — Eden defeated Inez on Sept. 20 by a score of 32-9.
KK Maynard jumped out of the gates with eight quick points in the first quarter. Maynard finished the game with a blistering 21 points for the evening.
Ally McGinnis dropped in seven points. Paige Stafford added four for the Wildcats.
Kenleigh Estep and Chloe Moore flipped in four apiece for the Indians. Harper Runyon added one from the free throw line.
Eden head coach Bruce “BJ” Endicott said, “We pulled out the win. I wasn’t sure if the A-team had come to play at first. About midway through the second quarter, we calmed down and controlled the ball. That’s when we began to put the game away. We finally started to realize, ‘hey, we can play.’”
Coach Endicott continued, “I’ve got to acknowledge KK. She came out like a mad beast. Zoe finally came out of her shell. She’s a dog on a leash on defense.”
Kennedy Mills liked the cooperation of her team.
“We had good passing and worked together,” Mills said. “Coach told us to play man tonight. The win feels good.”
Inez Indian Kenleigh Estep commented, “I think we did good getting up on them and taking the ball. Even though they beat us, we played hard and had fun.”
Inez head coach Alison Scott was proud of her team’s resilience.
“They came out with fight. They didn’t lay down and quit, even when we got down,” Scott said. “That’s what we talked about at the beginning of the game. No matter what, what they give out to you, you give back just as much. I think we did that.”
She added, “Still a lot of things to work on. Our man-to-man looked better. We’ve just got to rebound the ball. We can only go up from here.”
Inez picked up a win in the B-team contest 24-11.
Runyon kept the nets hot with 14 points, Estep fired in eight and Kinslee Callaham added four points in the win.
For the Cats, Harleigh Maynard led the way with four points. Alivia Stacy and the dynamic duo of sisters Laken and McKinley Fitch had two points apiece, and Paislee Hinkle nailed a free throw for one.
Eden won the C-team game after being down 8-0 at halftime and scoring 10 points in a row.
Martha Maynard had three steals and six points to lead the Cats to victory in the second half.
Wilson put four on the board for Eden.
Macie Callaham had four points for the Indians, while Jaylea Maynard and Alivia Bowen picked up two each.
Warfield at Eden — Eden picked up another win over Warfield 23-15 Thursday.
KK Maynard continued her dominating performance with 10 points in the opening stanza. She picked up another six in the second quarter.
Ally McGinnis dropped in four points for the Cats, while Kennedy Mills and Zoe Sammons each added two.
Anna Hinkle poured in 13 points for the Red Devils, and Jaz Jude had a bucket for two.
“Our kids were scared to death, but we’re going to work on some things in practice,” Warfield head coach Billy Maynard said. “We have improved, but we still have a long way to go. Most of these kids haven’t seen a basketball before this season. We’re not going to give up.”
Eden defeated Warfield in the B-team contest 19-6. Olivia Stacy had eight points, Lexi Bowen rumbled in four, Mylea Warren and Kennedi Fanni scored two points each, and Harleigh Maynard added one to the win.
Payzlee Fletcher had all six points for the Red Devils.
The Wildcats controlled the game from tip and came away with a 16-2 victory in the C-team matchup. Aubrey Wilson scored six points for Eden, Skylar Linley racked up four, Martha Maynard, Harper Howell and Charlie Mollette each pitched in two.
Baylee Hall had both of the Red Devil points.
Eden at Blaine — Eden traveled Route 201 to steamroll Blaine 29-10 in the A-team game Sept. 19.
Kailynn Maynard led the squad with 14 points; Paige Stafford tossed in six; Harleigh Maynard hit a bucket and a free throw for three points; Kennedy Mills, Zoe Sammons and Alivia Stacy each picked up two points.
The B-team lost a close one 6-4. Maynard and Stacy nailed a shot each for the Cats.
In C-team action, Sarah McCoy rolled to the wing and buried a jumper to give Eden the 2-0 win.