ROGERS — The Rogers Heritage girls basketball team came up with another historic moment in their short school history Tuesday night.
The Lady War Eagles claimed a 45-43 win over Springdale High to earn their second 7A-West Conference win and the first in school history on the road.
But the boys and girls teams both endured similar games this week in which they pushed the opponents for three quarters, but fell short.
The Lady War Eagles led for most of the first three quarters against rival Rogers High on Friday, but the Lady Mounties fi nished the game with a 20-3 run to pull away for a 45-33 win.
Their male counterparts put together a strong effort against league-leading Fort Smith Southside on the road, but the Rebels outscored the War Eagles 29-5 in the fourth quarter to cruise to the 62-42 win. The War Eagles also suffered a tough overtime loss at Springdale High on Tuesday after leading by double digits in the fourth quarter.
PLAY OF THE NIGHT: Senior Yalile Johnson and sophomore Brittany Ward will share the spotlight here since they bothplayed a part in the play that helped the Lady War Eagles claim their first road conference win in school history.
Ward got the steal and passed to Johnson for a layup with three seconds left to lift Heritage to a 45-43 win over Springdale High on Tuesday.
PLAYERS OF THE GAME: Senior Mac Olinger finished in double figures twice this week with 12 points against Springdale High and a dozen against Fort Smith Southside. Classmate Jon Warner also put together a huge effort against Southside with 10 points, 13 rebounds and six blocked shots against Southside.
Sophomore Ashley Ward finished with a game-high 17 points in the win at Springdale High, but junior Julie Whitlow also earns mention with a season-high 12 in Saturday’sloss at Southside.
NOTABLE: The Lady War Eagles did not shoot a free throw in the first half against Rogers High ... Senior Thomas Moreland recently set the school record for points in a single season. He passed Brandon Brzozkiewicz.
THE LINGO: “I think we showed our growth. You know three sophomores and a junior out there on the floor. To be in a game like this is huge for our program. To be in that situation we’ve got learn andgrow from that.” - KEVIN RAMEY, Rogers Heritage girls basketball coach, on the game against rival Rogers High.
UP NEXT: It will be a road show for the rest of the season for Heritage. The War Eagles and Lady War Eagles will have a three-game week beginning at Fort Smith Northside on Tuesday.
They will then finish the season on back-to-back nights at Springdale Har-Ber on Friday and at Bentonville on Saturday night.
Sports, Pages 7 on 02/21/2011