Lady Bulldogs take second win during Holiday Hoops tournament

December 6, 2017 at 5:00 a.m.

by Mike Eckels

MIKE ECKELS/Westside Eagle Observer Life Way's Karlie Lindsay (31) tries for a shot while Jacqueline Herrera (center) and Sammie Skaggs (Decatur 24) both put up successful blocks during the second round of the Decatur Holiday Hoops basketball tournament at Peterson Gym in Decatur Nov. 29. The Lady Bulldogs took their second win of the season, 45-23.
MIKE ECKELS/Westside Eagle Observer Life Way's Karlie Lindsay (31) tries for a shot while Jacqueline Herrera (center) and Sammie Skaggs (Decatur 24) both put up successful blocks during the second round of the Decatur Holiday Hoops basketball tournament at Peterson Gym in Decatur Nov. 29. The Lady Bulldogs took their second win of the season, 45-23.

DECATUR -- Peterson Gym came alive Nov. 29 as fans cheered on the Lady Bulldogs to their second victory of the season when they overwhelmed the Lady Warriors from Life Way Christian High School in the second round of the Decatur Holiday Hoops basketball tournament in Decatur.

Both teams were defeated in the first round of the tournament. The Lady Bulldogs were defeated by the Mountainburg Lady Dragons Nov. 28, and the Lady Warriors fell to the Elkins Lady Elks on the first day of the tournament, Nov. 27.

Decatur took control of the contest from the opening tip-off, scoring six quick points in the first 45 seconds of play. By the end of the first quarter, Decatur outscored Life Way, 17-5. In that quarter, senior Jackie Herrera contributed 11 of her career-high 17 points. By the end of the first half, the Lady Bulldogs had amassed a 20 point lead over the Lady Warriors, 29-9.

Life Way tried to get back into the contest but was unable to overcome the tough Decatur defense. The Decatur Lady Bulldogs took the win, 45-23, over the Life Way Christian Lady Warriors. This was the second win of the season for the Lady Bulldogs.

Leading scorers for the Decatur Lady Bulldogs were Jackie Herrera with 17 points, followed by Sammie Skaggs with 12, Destiny Mejia with 6, and Abby Tilley with 5. Paige Vann, Kaylee Morales and Deysi Rubi each had 2 points to round out the Lady Bulldogs' scoring effort.

The newest member of the Lady Bulldogs, Airbus Dungsungnoen, a foreign exchange student from Thailand, put in an outstanding performance on defense as she blocked several shots and picked up rebounds throughout the contest. Dungsungnoen, a senior, had never played basketball before coming to Decatur.

Decatur lost in the third round to the Bergman Lady Panthers, 51-18. The Lady Panthers went on to take the girls' championship Dec. 2.

The Lady Bulldogs will be back in action Dec. 5 at home in Peterson Gym against Kingston Yellowjackets and on the road Dec. 7 to meet the Colcord Lady Hornets at 7 p.m. during the Colcord Jamboree at Colcord High School.

Sports on 12/06/2017