ROGERS -- With the youth Fort Smith Northside's girls have on their roster, Coach Rickey Smith says that every game they play stays in the back of his head.
But he also said the Lady Bears have reached the point of the season where their lack of experience on the varsity level can longer be an excuse.
There was no need for excuses Saturday as Northside used two early scoring spurts to set the tone and went on to claim a 63-48 victory over Rogers Heritage during 6A-West Conference makeup action in War Eagle Arena.
"Early in the season we were playing good game, bad game," Smith said. "Then it goes to two good quarters, two bad quarters. Then we've gone to three good quarters, one bad quarter, and now it's 8 to 10 minutes of bad basketball. There were 6 or 8 minutes where we had some questionable shots and defensive breakdowns.
"But we're getting better, and I like this team. This is a good win for us. We are on the road and out of school and had only one practice, and now we've played two games. They threw a junk defense at us and switched defenses on us throughout the game. Those are the things that bother a young team, but I told our team I'm very proud of their maturity level."
Cherish Blackmon, one of three sophomores in Northside's starting lineup, had a team-high 16 points and helped the Lady Bears (19-3, 9-1) set the early tone. After Heritage (17-6, 6-4) took an early 5-0 lead, she sparked a 10-0 run with eight points and helped Northside take a lead it never relinquished.
Once the Lady War Eagles pulled back within 10-9 on a Sophie Surratt free throw, the Lady Bears closed out the first quarter with nine straight points for a 19-9 lead. Northside then started the second quarter with back-to-back buckets by Karys Washington and Kaydence Fleming for a 23-9 cushion.
"For us to keep winning and go where we want to go, it's going to take more than two players," Smith said. "Our bench, Flemming and [Anniyah] Brewer, was a huge spark with some defensive rebounds and hit some threes and kept possessions alive.
"Cherish Blackmon doesn't know how good she can be. She's one of the most athletic kids I've coached in 30 years at Northside. Last year, she was very, very raw, and this year she's getting better. She's finally getting the right mindset for basketball."
Northside enjoyed a 33-21 halftime lead and took its biggest lead when a bucket by Washington made the score 39-23 with 5:30 left in the third quarter. Heritage, however, managed to pull within 47-38 on a Surratt three-pointer to close out the third quarter.
The Lady Bears regained their double-digit cushion for good on a Erikka Gooden 3-pointer and kept the ball when a foul was called away from the play. Blackmon then added a bucket and hit one of two free throws to make it a 55-40 game with 5:19 remaining.
Washington added 15 points and Erianna Gooden chipped in 13 for Northside, which travels to Springdale Har-Ber for a key 6A-West game Tuesday. Carlee Casteel had 17 points for Heritage, which now drops to fourth place in the standings following back-to-back losses, followed by Sarratt with 15 and Ruthie McCain with 10.
BOYS
FS Northside 62, Rogers Heritage 61
Dae'Marion Savoy's free throw with 12.7 seconds remaining proved to be the difference as Northside held off Heritage.
The Grizzles (14-10, 5-5) owned a 44-37 lead to start the fourth quarter and led 55-46 after Jayvion Smith's bucket with 3:42 remaining before the War Eagles made it close, cutting it to a 61-58 margin after Ben Manuel's bucket with 14.4 seconds left to play.
Smith's free throw made it a four-point Northside lead, then Parker Branscum hit a three-pointer for the final score before the buzzer. Heritage (5-18, 1-9), however, was out of timeouts and couldn't stop the clock again.
Marco Smith had 15 points to lead four Grizzlies in double figures, followed by Jayvion Smith with 14, Derek Shepard with 12 and Denarion Whitmore with 10. Manuel had 22 for Heritage, while Taylor Burgess added 15 and Branscum chipped in 10.