Kendall Toineeta (#3), Lady Braves senior point guard, drives past Robbinsville’s Madison Cole (#12) during Friday’s home game. Toineeta scored 22 points to lead the Lady Braves to a 68-52 victory. (AMBLE SMOKER/One Feather photos)
By AMBLE SMOKER
ONE FEATHER STAFF
The Cherokee Lady Braves (12-0) extended their undefeated streak to 12 after a home win over Robbinsville on Friday, Jan. 9. The Lady Braves were able to outlast a stout Robbinsville squad by pulling away in the second half to take a 68-52 victory.
“I thought we played a really intense ballgame in front of a big crowd,” said Lady Braves head coach Chris Mintz. “We hustled all over the place. We didn’t shoot the ball great, but our defense made up for it. We had a nice run in the third quarter where we ended up pulling away for good.”
Timiyah Brown, Lady Braves freshman guard, lines up for a free throw. She finished the night with 11 points.
The Lady Braves built a comfortable lead throughout the first quarter, taking a 21-12 lead going to the bench. Robbinsville entered the second quarter with momentum on their side as they erased a nine-point deficient, bringing the game to within a couple points midway through the second quarter. However, the Lady Braves turned up the pressure on defense and were able to find their stride offensively. As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Reagan Barnard dropped a three-pointer to close the quarter and extend Cherokee to a double-digit lead of 39-29 at the half.
The Lady Braves came out of the locker room on fire as the shooters began finding their mark, scoring 20 points to extend the third quarter lead to 59-38. A stubborn Lady Braves defense held Robbinsville to nine points as the Lady Knights struggled mightily with the full court press.
Robbinsville was able to outscore Cherokee 14-9 in the final eight minutes of regulation but fell short of making a complete comeback, falling 68-52.
Scorers from Cherokee included: Kendall Toineeta 22, Reagan Barnard 14, Timiyah Brown 11, Lele Lossiah 10, Shelby Wolfe 5, and Bree Stamper 2.
Robbinsville scorers included: Kinsley Orr 17, Erin Maennle 13, Paige Collins 6, Madison Cole 5, Katie Walsh 4, Daylee Brooms 4, and Kayla Jackson 3.
To view or purchase photos from this game, visit https://onefeather.smugmug.com/SPORTS/BASKETBALL/LADY-BRAVES-BASKETBALL-201415/Vs-Robbinsville-January-9/
