Lady Tigers learn from losses

The St. Regis girls had two losses this week, but Coach Janelle Pruitt said that there were also some positive things to celebrate in the midst of them.

Playing at home on Thursday, the girls were up against county rival, Alberton. They were having a hard time finding the way past Alberton’s defensive measure’s and were down 2-12 at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter was also a tough one for the girls. They ended up being outscored by Alberton, 10-2, and entered halftime behind their opponent, 4-22.

“The first half was a little rough,” Coach Janelle Pruitt said. “The girls were hard on themselves. When they aren’t doing well, they take it to heart.”

Pruitt said they talked during the break at halftime and the girls came out in the second half with a better attitude. They played St. Regis more evenly in the third and fourth quarters, outscoring the Lady Panthers in the fourth, 9-7.

“We did have some trouble finding the basket during that game, but that’s something we’ll work through,” Pruitt said. “Alberton had some really tough, outside shooters that we weren’t expecting and they are a pretty good team.”

The girls had something to celebrate though. Shelby Berg scored her first basket.

“It was a big step and the team was really excited and she was really excited,” Pruitt said. “We celebrate the small things and sometimes they’re the most important.”

Juliana Spencer scored nine points, Brogan Peters added three and Arianna Jones scored six.

With the loss to Alberton behind them, the girls moved on to play Arlee, which turned out to be a tough game. Though they lost, Pruitt said that the game actually went really well.

“We did lose, but my team played well. They had a great attitude and tried every second of the game,” Pruitt said. “They had a press on us the last three minutes, but the girls kept their heads on their shoulders and that in itself is an accomplishment. I was really impressed.”

Pruitt also had a player get into foul trouble, which also made it tough. The team fell “pretty far behind,” but Pruitt said she was proud of them.

The girls play Hot Springs on Tuesday. Pruitt said she’s thinking it is going to be a great game.

“I had the chance to watch them this last weekend and I think we’ll match up really well,” Pruitt said.