By By Marty Stamper/The Meridian Star
Dec. 16, 2001
UNION – Union and Nanih Waiya exchanged season's beatings Saturday afternoon with the Union boys winning by 39 points and the Nanih Waiya girls taking a 24-point victory.
The Yellowjackets tallied a season-high 96 points in a 96-57 rout in the day's opener. Nanih Waiya's girls won 61-37 in the second game.
Nanih Waiya returns to action Tuesday at Carthage. The Union boys play Ackerman next in the Philadelphia-Rush Medical Holiday Classic, Dec. 27-29, while the Union girls take on Montgomery County in the Nanih Waiya Christmas Invitational, Dec. 27-29, for their next action.
Girls
Nanih Waiya 61
Union 37
Nanih Waiya led 14-13 after one quarter and was clinging to a 17-15 lead when Ashley Pugh converted a rare four-point play to put the Lady Warriors up 21-15 with 4:50 left in the first half.
Pugh's play began an 18-0 Nanih Waiya run that didn't end until Hali Rainer connected for Union with 1:02 to go in the first half. The Lady Jackets were without LaSaundra Harrison during the run after she hit her head on the floor during a battle for a rebound.
Nanih Waiya led 37-17 at the break.
The Lady Warriors were still up by 20 (50-30) at the end of the third quarter.
Union got to within 51-35 with 6:08 to go, but baskets from Courtnee Graham and Jaimee Jones and two free throws from Heather Steele put the Lady Warriors back up 57-35 to ice their third win over Union in as many meetings.
Nanih Waiya, 10-4, got 21 points from Pugh, 11 from Graham, nine from Cynthia Madison, and seven from Alana Hickman. Pugh had 10 points in the second quarter.
Harrison led Union, 3-7, with 14 points. Lauren White added eight. Harrison connected on four 3-pointers.
Union 96
Nanih Waiya 57
The Yellowjackets lost their season opener at Nanih Waiya, but had no problem in the rematch, leading 24-12 after one quarter and 56-17 at halftime.
Douglas Wansley led Union, 6-5, with a career-high 32 points. Wansley hit four 3-pointers in the game and had a 13-point second quarter. Prentiss Evans and Derrick Harris scored 18 apiece and Anthony Johnson had 15.
Nanih Waiya, 3-7, got 19 points from David Frey, 18 from Brent Blackwell, and 10 from Jeremiah Eichelberger. Frey hit four 3-pointers.
Marty Stamper is a sports writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail him at mstamper@themeridianstar.com or call him at 693-1551, ext. 3235.