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DODSONVILLE — The Lynchburg-Clay Lady Mustangs hosted the Miami Trace Lady Panthers in the season-opening basketball game for both teams Saturday night.

Lynchburg-Clay led for the majority of the game as they posted a 47-40 victory.

One key factor in this non-conference match-up was rebounding.

Lynchburg-Clay won the battle of the boards en route to the victory.

The Lady Mustangs had 15 offensive rebounds to just three from Miami Trace on the offensive glass. Miami Trace had 18 total rebounds. Total rebounds for L-C were not available.

Lynchburg-Clay had a potent one-two scoring punch of junior Peyton Scott, who led the game with 21 points, and sophomore Zoe Fittro, who added 16.

A trio of Lady Panthers, senior Becca Ratliff, junior Shay McDonald and sophomore Gracee Stewart, each scored nine points. Ratliff and Stewart each had three three-point field goals.

After L-C took a 9-5 lead, Ratliff hit back-to-back three-pointers to give Miami Trace what proved to be its only lead of the game, 11-9 at the 2:48 mark of the first quarter.

Lynchburg-Clay scored the next five points to go in front, 14-11.

Miami Trace senior Olivia Wolffe’s two free throws at the end of the quarter set the score at 14-13.

Miami Trace would go on to score nine points in the second, third and fourth quarters.

The Lady Mustangs twice led by as many as six points in the second quarter, until a pair of free throws from Scott gave the home team its biggest lead to that point, 28-20 with 33 seconds to play until the halftime break.

Wolffe scored the final points of the half to leave L-C with a 28-22 halftime lead.

Miami Trace made a move on the Lady Mustangs with a bucket from Delaney Eakins and the third trey of the game for Ratliff. Miami Trace trailed 28-27 with five minutes to play in the third quarter.

Later in the third, Scott was fouled on a three-point attempt and made the three free throws to put the Lady Mustangs in front, 35-29.

Lynchburg-Clay led 37-31 after three quarters of action.

Wolffe converted the old-fashioned three-point play just a minute into the fourth quarter, pulling Miami Trace to within three points (37-34).

Lynchburg-Clay held its biggest lead, 47-37, only for a few seconds before Stewart hit a three to set the final tally at 47-40.

“I told the kids in the locker room that’s the best game I’ve ever seen them have, as far as rebounding,” Lynchburg-Clay head coach Whitney Lewis said. “We rebounded phenomenally tonight. That was the difference in the game. They got one shot and they were done.

“That allowed us to (get away with) some mental mistakes,” Lewis said. “We turned the ball over (unofficially 21 times) a lot more than we should have. But because they had one shot and done, we were able to pull this one out. I’m really, really happy with that effort.

“I can’t say enough about our rebounding and our defensive effort,” Lewis said. “That is a good win against a quality club.”

“In my opinion (Peyton Scott) is the best player in the area, bar none,” Miami Trace head coach Ben Ackley said. “She’s just so smooth with the ball.

“A lot of our rebounding issues tonight stemmed from our being in rotations a lot more than we normally are, because we were chasing (Scott),” Ackley said. “We were out of position, ending up with guards on post players.

“I couldn’t be more proud of our kids and their effort,” Ackley said. “I thought they kept fighting. We had a lot of shots not fall tonight that will fall over the course of the year.”

Miami Trace connected on 14 of 43 field goal attempts for 33 percent. Miami Trace made 6 of 18 three-point attempts for 33 percent.

Lynchburg-Clay was 18 of 42 for 43 percent overall from the field and 3 of 5 from behind the three-point line.

“We played like a young team and we are,” Ackley said. “We’ll just have to learn on the job and continue to get better every day.”

Miami Trace will host Fairfield Union Tuesday in the old gymnasium with the j-v game at 5:30 p.m.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

MT 13 9 9 9 — 40

L-C 14 14 9 10 — 47

MIAMI TRACE — Olivia Wolffe 2-3-7; Cassidy Lovett 0-0-0; Becca Ratliff 0 (3)-0-9; Shay McDonald 3-3-9; Tori Evans 0-0-0; Aubrey Schwartz 1-0-2; Gracee Stewart 0 (3)-0-9; Delaney Eakins 2-0-4. TOTALS — 8 (6)-6-40. Free throw shooting: 6 of 11 for 55 percent. Three-point field goals: Ratliff, 3; Stewart, 3. Field goal shooting: 14 of 43 for 33 percent. Three-point field goal shooting: 6 of 18 for 33 percent. Rebounds: 18 (3 offensive). Turnovers: 17. Assists: 9. Steals: 12.

LYNCHBURG-CLAY — Zoe Fittro 2 (3)-3-16; Chelsea Hart 1-0-2; Serena Smith 0-0-0; Sierra Benney 0-0-0; Peyton Scott 8-5-21; Sam Kirby 1-0-2; Logan Binkley 3-0-6. TOTALS — 15 (3)-8-47. Free throw shooting: 8 of 11 for 73 percent. Three-point field goals: Fittro, 3. Field goal shooting: 18 of 42 for 43 percent. Three-point field goal shooting: 3 of 5 for 60 percent. Offensive rebounds: 15. Turnovers: 21.

Miami Trace’s Delaney Eakins drives to the basket during the season-opening game at Lynchburg-Clay High School Saturday, Nov. 24, 2018.
https://www.recordherald.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/27/2018/11/web1_Delaney-Eakins-MT-girls-vs-LC-11-24-2018.jpgMiami Trace’s Delaney Eakins drives to the basket during the season-opening game at Lynchburg-Clay High School Saturday, Nov. 24, 2018. Chris Hoppes | Record-Herald

By Chris Hoppes

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