Faith Lutheran girls waste no time
Faith Lutheran’s girls basketball team could not have asked for a better start on Tuesday afternoon against Pahrump Valley.
All 12 players dressed entered the game before halftime as the hot-shooting Crusaders stormed out to a commanding lead and never folded.
Haley Vinson scored 11 of her 17 points in the first quarter and the Crusaders cruised to a 67-21 home win over the Trojans.
“It was a very good start,” Faith Lutheran coach Jennifer Karner said. “We didn’t have such a great start last week in our game, so that was a big point of emphasis. The girls took it to heart and came out and did that.
“We wanted to get everyone involved. Some of our players that don’t get in all the time make us better in practice, and when they get in there, it’s just as fun to watch them as the starters.”
Faith Lutheran started the game on a 9-0 run, with eight points coming from Vinson.
The Crusaders (9-3, 3-0 Division I-A Sunset) never took their feet of the gas, and eventually forced Pahrump Valley to call a timeout with 2 minutes, 37 seconds left in the first quarter after connecting on three 3-pointers to take a 15-2 lead.
Faith Lutheran finished 24 of 49 from the field (49 percent), including 5-for-13 on 3-pointers.
“We spend a lot of time shooting,” Karner said. “Plus, we have a little bit more of an experienced team — three seniors that are big leaders for us. So they know the importance of hitting those shots and their confidence is high right now.”
Vinson also had four assists and four steals for Faith Lutheran, which led 36-11 at halftime.
“She has been the catalyst,” Karner said of Vinson. “Her defense spurs her offense and when she’s playing good defense like she did tonight, her offense shines.”
Morgan Hill added 13 points and two blocks for the Crusaders, who got 12 points apiece from Kim Munro and Madison Bocobo. Munro also had six rebounds and three steals.
Pahrump Valley (2-10, 0-5) finished with 21 turnovers, and was 7-for-39 from the field (18 percent).
Alyssa Murphy had eight points and four rebounds, and teammate Jill Smith pulled down 10 rebounds for the Trojans.
Contact reporter Ashton Ferguson at aferguson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0430. Follow him on Twitter: @af_ferguson.