Sandiettes Swat Lady Yellow Jackets, 79-35
Big First Quarter Keys Rout
By Will Johnson
Messenger Reporter
GRAPELAND – The Grapeland Sandiettes took a break from district play as they welcomed the Alto Lady Yellow Jackets to town for some non-conference hoops action.
Grapeland came into the game with an overall record of 19-5, a mark of 3-0 in District 20-2A and a ranking of #8 in the Jan. 6 TABC poll.
Alto, on the other hand, came into the game unranked, with an overall record of 14-9 and had yet to start league play in District 21-2A.
The Sandiettes – as expected – based on the two teams’ pedigrees, had no trouble with the Lady Yellow Jackets as Grapeland zapped Alto for 29 first quarter points on their way to a 79-35 win.
The Lady Yellow Jackets had no answer for the Sandiettes inside game as Teira Jones racked up 11 first quarter points while Kenya Woods torched Alto for 10. KeKe Harris added four as both Jessie Payne and Christi Shepherd had two apiece.
Alto’s points came from Mya Tyra with five and Maquela Jackson with two.
The Sandiettes offensive tempo slowed down somewhat in the second period as they only managed 12 points. Payne led the way with four while Jones added three more to her total. Woods and Mary Jane Watson both had two while Aeriannia Granderson made one of two from the charity stripe to help give Grapeland a 41-14 lead at the break.
Even though the offensive pace slowed down for the Sandiettes, Grapeland’s defensive intensity remained steady as they held the Lady Yellow Jackets to seven points in the period, once again. Tyra had three while Jackson and Lourdes Perez chipped in two apiece to close out Alto’s first half scoring.
When play resumed in the third quarter, the Sandiettes put the game away on ice, thanks to the inside play of Jones who poured in 16 points. Granderson added three while both Harris and Woods chipped in two as Grapeland opened up a 64-26 lead after three periods of play.
The Lady Yellow Jackets’ offense managed to break into double digits in the quarter as Tyra dropped in five while Jackson had four. Makayla Black accounted for Alto’s remaining three points in the quarter.
With a 38-point lead to begin the final period of play, the Sandiettes throttled down the action. Granderson and Payne both had four while Woods hit the only three-pointer of the game for Grapeland. Harris and Shepherd both had a basket to close out the contest as the Sandiettes cruised to a 79-35 win.
On the game, Alto was led by Mya Tyra with 19 points. Maquela Jackson netted nine, Makayla Black added three while Lourdes Perez and Abbie Teutsch dropped in two apiece.
Teira Jones led the Sandiettes in scoring with a game-high 30 points. Kenya Woods knocked down 17 while Jessie Payne was also in double figures with 10. KeKe Harris added nine, Aeriannia Granderson went for seven, Christie Shepherd had four and Mary Jane Watson chipped in a two-pointer to round out the Grapeland scoring.
Will Johnson may be contacted via e-mail at [email protected].
