SILOAM SPRINGS -- Siloam Springs came through with a victory on its coach's birthday.
The Panthers built a 20-point lead in the first half and made just enough plays late to hold off Russellville on Tuesday 52-47 in Panther Activity Center.
Girls
Russellville 63, Siloam Springs 41
Russellville^9^28^16^10^—^63
Siloam Springs^5^8^17^11^—^41
Russellville (9-8, 4-0): Davis 29, McCallister 8, Rhode 7, Shields 6, Murphy 5, Meyers 4, Ealy 4.
Siloam Springs (6-13, 2-3): Vaughn 15, Price 8, Harried 6, Hollenback 4, Buckminster 4, Noel 2, Johnson 2.
Boys
Siloam Springs 52, Russellville 47
Russellville^2^8^19^18^^—^47
Siloam Springs^18^9^11^14^—^52
Russellville (5-13, 0-5): Shaffer 12, White 9, George 7, Sitkowski 6, Talley 5, Adkins 4, Peter 4,
Siloam Springs (5-14, 3-2): Lashley 19, Flores 13, Wakefield 7, Stewart 6, Vachon 4, Pettit 2, Clement 1.
The Panthers' big lead had been trimmed to 46-44 with a little more than 2 minutes left after Javion White hit his third 3-pointer of the fourth quarter.
But that was as close as the Cyclones would get as the Panthers finished off the 5A/6A District 1 victory.
"Good birthday present from the boys," said Siloam Springs coach Tim Stewart. "Couldn't be more proud of the team handling some adversity. We had some kids that didn't play tonight, and kids that hadn't gotten as many minutes stepped up and really contributed."
Senior Spencer Lashley led the Panthers (5-14, 3-2) with 19 points, including seven points in the fourth quarter and 5 of 6 from the free-throw line in the final minutes. Siloam Springs senior guard Diego Flores scored 10 of his 13 points in the first half.
After the Panthers' lead was cut to 2, Flores hit a free throw with 2 minutes 6 seconds left for a 47-44 lead.
The Cyclones turned it over twice in a row and the Panthers cashed in for four straight points. Jacob Wakefield scored inside and Lashley hit a pair of free throws for a 51-44 lead with 33.4 seconds left.
Siloam Springs led 18-2 after the first quarter and pulled ahead 24-4 in the second quarter after a 3-pointer from Jordan Stewart.
The Panthers led 27-10 at halftime, but Russellville trimmed the lead to 38-29 going into the fourth quarter.
It was another tough loss for the Cyclones (5-13, 0-5), who remained winless in league play. Kade Shaffer led Russellville with 12 points, while White had nine, all in the fourth quarter on three 3-pointers.
"I think we've lost seven games by one possession or less this year," said Russellville coach Matt Hall. "This one doesn't fall under that category, but I think it was a two-point game with two minutes to go. We've been right there all year. We just haven't been able to get over the hump."
Girls
Russellville 63, Siloam Springs 41
Russellville has come on strong in recent weeks since the start of 5A/6A District 1 play.
The Lady Cyclones remained unbeaten in league play Tuesday night with a blowout win.
Russellville (9-8, 5-0) outscored the Lady Panthers 28-8 in the second quarter to take a 37-13 lead at halftime.
Siloam Springs' Hadlee Hollenback scored to pull the Lady Panthers within 11-9 early in the second quarter, and Russellville responded with a 26-4 run to close the half.
Cara Davis led the charge for Russellville, scoring 14 of her 16 first-half points in the second quarter. Davis finished with 29 to lead the Lady Cyclones.
Morgan Vaughn scored 15 points to lead Siloam Springs (6-13, 2-3).
Sports on 01/17/2018