Sandiettes Comeback Falls Short
Cushing 64 Grapeland 48
By Will Johnson
Messenger Reporter
GARPELAND – In their last home game before the start of play in District 20-2A, the Grapeland Sandiettes welcomed the Cushing Galkats to town for a non-district contest.
The Sandiettes have struggled so far this year to find consistency and once again on Tuesday evening, Grapeland got off to a rocky start before trimming a 20-point deficit down to eight at the start of the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, the Sandiettes were unable to sustain the momentum as they fell to Cushing by a final score of 64-48.
As the game got underway, the Galkats got off to a fast start. Mackenzie Parker had four for Cushing while Delaney Hancock and Lexi Nichols put in three apiece. Kaylei Downs and Lexi Moore had two each while Jacelynn Harvey chipped in a free throw to help the Galkats take a 15-9 lead after the first eight minutes of play.
JaMiyah Bowie netted four, first quarter points for the Sandiettes while Cyshia Black had three and Sa’Riah Davis had two.
The second quarter didn’t get any easier for the Sandiettes as they only managed seven in the period and found themselves staring up at a 34-16 deficit at halftime.
Grapeland’s second quarter points came from Davis with three while both Destiny Bolden and Te’Lia Jones had two each.
Cushing’s point production in the second period came from Harvey with six while three other Galkats – Moore, Parker and Leighah Deckard – had three apiece. Downs and Hancock both added one to close out the first half scoring.
Morgan Terry
After the break, the Sandiettes increased their pace and scored more in the third period than they did the entire first half. Grapeland cut the lead to single-digits twice but could not quite get over the hump as Cushing managed to take a 14-point lead into the final period of play.
Te’Lia Jones poured in nine third quarter points while Black knocked down seven. Bolden and Davis added two apiece as the Sandiettes trimmed the lead to 50-36 after three periods of play.
The Galkats third quarter points came from Deckard with nine, Downs with four and Moore with a three-pointer.
At the beginning of the fourth, Grapeland cut the lead down to eight but once again Cushing battled back to open up a double-digit lead on their way to a 64-48 win.
On the game, the Galkats were led in scoring by Leighah Deckard with 12 points. Kaylei Downs and Mackenzie Parker both dropped in 11, Lexi Moore had eight, Delaney Hancock and Jacelynn Harvey had seven apiece and Lexie Nichols had six. Chloe Jones closed out the Cushing scoring with a pair of free throws.
The Sandiettes were led by Cyshia Black with a game-high 14 points. She was joined in double-figures by Te’Lia Jones with 13 while Sa’Riah Davis dropped in nine. JaMiyah Bowie added six, Destiny Bolden had four and Morgan Terry chipped in a basket to round out the Grapeland scoring on the night.
Will Johnson may be contacted via e-mail at [email protected].
