SPRINGDALE — Springdale Har-Ber was in trouble in the second half at Van Buren Friday with fouls piling up and players being limited because of injuries.
That Figures
3 — Consecutive defeats by Van Buren before a 66-53 victory over Har-Ber in the boys’ game
13 — Turnovers forced by the Har-Ber girls in the first half while building a 31-16 lead over Van Buren
25 — Fouls called against Har-Ber in the girls’ game, when Van Buren made 23-of-34 free throws
Leading scorer Bailey Schalk fouled out with only three points and starting guard Samantha Weber played only briefly and did not score while nursing a shoulder injury. Yet, the Lady Wildcats scraped together enough offense and made 17-of -3 free throws in the game to win 51-45.
Eight players contributed points for Har-Ber (15-10, 6-4 7A/6A-West), which avoided an 0-2 showing for the week after losing 55-45 at Bentonville.
PLAY OF THE WEEK: Van Buren cut a 15-point deficit to four points when Makenzie Glassco made two free throws with 2 minutes, 30 seconds left in the game. But Caylee Wright answered with a layup off a turnover to start a 6-0 spurt that put Har-Ber ahead 51-41 with 1:41 left.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK: With Springdale Har-Ber facing adversity on the road Friday, senior Caylee Wright took control and scored 19 points to lead the Lady Wildcats to a 51-48 victory at Van Buren. Wright’s steady hand was significant with her teammate at guard, Samantha Weber, spending most of the time on the bench with an injury. Senior Alex Rice scored 35 points in two games for the Springdale Har-Ber boys, but the Wildcats were 0-2 for the week with a 61-51 loss to Bentonville followed by a 66-53 defeat to Van Buren.
NOTABLE: Har-Ber won the girls game despite being outscored 18-9 in the third quarter by Van Buren... The Van Buren boys moved one game ahead of Har-Ber and the Pointers own the tiebreaker should the two teams finish tied in the standings. Van Buren won 66-53 Friday after Har-Ber won 56-52 last month.... Har-Ber has lost four of its past five games by an average margin of 171/2 points.
THE LINGO: “The game was called (closer) than on Tuesday night and I told our kids we have to adjust to that. You’re going to have some adversity and you’ve got to play through it.”
Sandy Wright
Springdale Har-Ber girls coach
UP NEXT: Har-Ber will host rival Springdale High on Tuesday then play at Rogers Heritage on Friday. Siloam Springs swept Springdale High on the road Friday with the Panthers winning 65-53 and the Lady Panthers winning 48-45.