The Poteau Lady Pirates earned a tough on the road win with a 45-34 victory over the Checotah Lady Wildcats. Poteau hit seven three-point shots in the first half to take a 21-13, halftime lead. Poteau outscored Checotah 12-4 in the opening period and put the Lady Wildcats in a hole that they failed to get out of.
Checotah competed hard in the second period as they scored nine points as Aiyana Brewer scored from the three-point line while Hailey Prince, Shyanne Madewell and Ruby Folkner added scores of their own.
Both teams came out firing shot after shot in the third period led by Ruby Folkner who scored seven of her game total 13 points. Poteau had two players in double digit with Brooklyn Garner and Parker Patterson combining for 23 points as they outscored Checotah 15 to 11.
The Lady Wildcats didn’t give up as they played tough defense and forced several turnovers and converted them into points as Jazlyn Atkins and Madewell played great defensively, only allowing one 3-point shot in the entire second half and outscored Poteau 10-9. But the Lady Pirates fast start was a huge factor in their 4534 victory.
Checotah was led by Ruby Folkner with 13 points, five rebounds and three steals, Aiyana Brewer scored seven points and grabbed five rebounds and Hailey Prince added six points and four rebounds.
Poteau escapes Checotah in overtime
If you’re a fan of basketball this was the game to watch. From start to finish this game was exciting no matter who you were rooting for, however the Poteau Pirates escaped with a 55-54 victory. The Wildcats came shooting jump shots and working the paint as they outscored Poteau 15-11 on the backs of R.J. Womack, Elijah Thomas and Tyler Orman. Womack has come into his own as the junior forward battle relentlessly in the paint for rebounds and forced multiple turnovers. Thomas played lights-out as he led all scorers with 29 points and helped lead the Wildcats to a 26 to 23-halftime lead.
Poteau would not go down without a fight as Wyatt Gamble and Hansen Stroops each long three-point bucket’s to start the third period. Aum Patel answered with a three-point shot his own as the Wildcats led 40 to 33 to end the period.
The Pirates began to force turnovers and convert as Gamble and Dax Collins combined for 14 points to outscore Checotah 14-7 to force overtime. Stroops and Connor Withmoth combined for 8-points while Orman, Kamden Miller and Thomas combined for 7 points to end the game in a heartbreaking 55-54 loss.
Missed free-throws and defensive rebounding played a factor in the loss for the Wildcats. Elijah Thomas led Checotah with 29 points, Womack had seven points, eight rebounds and five steals and Orman scored 11 points, grabbed five rebounds and had six steals.
Poteau had four players in double-digits with Conner Withmoth 20 points, Wyatt Gamble 14, Dax Collons 10 and Stroops 11 points.
“This was another nail-biter for us. We were so close but Poteau just made one better play than we did. I’m proud of this team and the effort they gave all night. I wish we were going into the holiday break with another win but there were a lot of positives we took away with this game. Everyone is playing better and we are coming together as a total team,” Checotah head coach Malcolm Warrior said.
