A successful win by the Lady Panthers took place Monday afternoon against the Lady Hornets at Alabama State University. The Lady Panthers ended with a final score of 69-50, even with the loss of their star player Candice Thomas, who had to quit the game in the middle of the second half due to an unexpected knee injury.
The beginning of the match started off a little rocky, but the Lady Panthers and the Lady Hornets were both a bit quiet after tip off. There was a bounce heard, but no “swish” had been made, until Latarra Darrett from PVAMU decided to shake things up with a 2-pointer at the 15:27 mark. It was from that moment on that Prairie View was in it for the gold.
Although the Lady Hornets weren’t going down easily, they strategized a plan that put them in the lead by keeping it simple and shooting in the paint. Which seemed to work until the Lady Panthers caught wind of the scheme and broke it up when Shanice Merritt checked in and scored a layup off back, setting the score 9-7, with the Lady Panthers in the lead.
Attempting to maintain the lead star player Thomas filled the basket time after time only allowing the Lady Hornets to have scored one basket when the score was set at 16-9. But by no means did that stop the Lady Hornets from stinging like the wasps they are, when they put a stop to the streak Thomas had held by setting the score at 16-15, with 7 minutes and 42 seconds left to go in the first half.
A game of tug-of-war was played out as the first half was coming to a close. Both teams demanded the lead; the game grew intense when PVAMU held a 7-0 lead over ASU. Yet in a sense it motivated the Lady Hornets to fight back and begin with a back-to-back shot method that Thomas had used earlier in the game. However, their plans as usual backfired, when ASU’s Tanika Jackson slipped up with a turnover, thus giving Prairie View possession and finishing the first half with score set 29-23.
With the second half in motion the spotlight was on the Lady Panthers as they maintained the lead being guided by Thomas who maneuvered through the Lady Hornets, almost as if she was invisible, but with a crash to the floor, Thomas fell hard, injuring her knee and putting her out for the rest of the game. The team appeared to be at a loss in the eyes of the Lady Hornets, seeing as though the Lady Panthers were now without both of their best players Gaati Werema and Thomas.
The Lady Panthers refused to take another loss this time. Latara Darrett, who had originally set the game in motion, finished it in style. Showing her sportsmanship and leadership capability allowed PVAMU to go home with the gold.
It was no surprise that Darrett would have ended the game with the most points after the way she rose to the occasion. 23 points, 16 rebounds, and two assists summed up her stats for the game. Thomas on the other hand totaled up 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists. Teammates Robin Jones and Courtney Larsen equally contributed nine points to the team’s overall score of 69 points.
For now, the Panthers are off the road. With three straight home games ahead of them, arch rival Texas Southern University is set for a rematch after Prairie View A&M won the first match-up in Houston. The match-up will take place at the William “Billy” Nicks Building.
The Journey there might have been long, but the struggle that took place on the court seemed even longer. The Lady Panthers experienced their first loss against the Alabama A&M Lady Bulldogs this past Saturday, ending with a final score of 68-62 in the Lady Bulldogs’ favor. This was their first conference loss after the Lady Panthers surprised the school and even themselves with a 23 straight Southwestern Athletic Conference winning surge.
It would have appeared that the Lady Panthers of Prairie View A&M University had nothing to lose and everything to gain. But the Lady Bulldogs came out strong and very much unexpected. Prairie View A&M started off fast which was set by Darrett and later continued by Larsen who scored a three point shot at the 18:05 mark, setting the score at 5-0, Lady Panther’s favor.
Alabama A&M attempted to make a comeback, but Prairie View A&M looked like they had this game in the bag. Numerous steals, blocks, and turnovers were made by both teams, yet Prairie View A&M maintained a substantial lead until the Lady Bull Dogs’ guard Chiquita Tovar tied the game 15-15 at the 8:04 mark.
It was from that point on that the Lady Panthers began to slip further and further into the background. Alabama A&M forced an approximately 13 turnovers from the Lady Panthers in the first and ended it with a total score of 32-29 at the half, Lady Bulldogs’ favor.
The Lady Panthers knew that they had come too far to lose; they came out pumped with energy in the second half. Lady Panthers’ forward Ciara Banks cut Alabama A&M’s lead to one when she shot a jumper at the 19:05 mark, and then the energy disappeared or the dog really did come out of the bull, because the Lady Bulldogs weren’t having it. Back to back baskets by guard Katrich Williams of the Lady Bulldogs put Alabama A&M ahead in the game once again.
Prairie View A&M attempted a serious comeback when Lady Panther Robin Jones narrowed Alabama’s lead down to a four point advantage at the 4:41 mark. But it wasn’t enough to stop Alabama’s star player Williams who ultimately lead her team to the substantial victory over the PVAMU Lady Panthers with 30 points, four rebounds, and four assists.
The Panthers lost their main star player, Werema who suffered a knee injury at practice the day before the game. The injury play a huge factor in the game, but the game still has to be played. Nonetheless the Lady Panthers fell short and broke their 23 SWACC game winning streak.
The Lady Panthers did come out with a decent overall performance, despite the loss, Darrett scored 26 points, nine rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and two steals. Thomas averaged 13 points, five assists, and one steal, while Robin Jones contributed 11 points, two blocks, and nine rebounds, along with Courtney Larsen who also benefited her team with seven points, two assists, and two blocks.
Even with a loss the Lady Panthers of Prairie View A&M University still have one goal-winning another SWAC Championship and making another NCAA Tournament appearance is the ultimate goal.