Ash Grove Pirates fall in Blue & Gold opener

Lady Pirates beat Greenfield and Niangua, advance to semifinals of Walnut Grove tourney
 
The Ash Grove boys’ and girls’ basketball teams are both playing in holiday tournament and while the Pirates lost their first-round game at the Blue and Gold Tournament, the Lady Pirates have their first two games at the Walnut Grove Holiday Classic.

Boys
    The Pirates entered the tournament opening game with an 8-0 record, but the Fair Grove Eagles put an end to that with a 68-61 victory in Hammons Student Center on the campus of Missouri State University, Monday morning.
    Brady Nicholson paced Ash Grove with 17 points; Nate Trammell added 13 points and Sam Moreland ended the game with 11 points.
    The week prior, the Pirates won their eighth game of the season by knocking off Fordland, 55-50 on Monday, Dec. 20, at Fordland.
    Ash Grove led 15-12 at the end of the first quarter and increased that lead to 30-23 by the half. Fordland outscored Ash Grove 14-12 in the third quarter but still trailed, 42-37 at the start of the fourth quarter. The Pirates scored 13 points in the fourth to put the game away and win by five points.
    "We were 2-for-21 from the three-point line tonight,” said head coach Grant Williamson. “The shots just didn't want to fall for us, but credit to our guys for still finding a way to make the plays needed to win."
    Nicholson led Ash Grove with 21 points and Trammell added 11 points in the win.
    The Pirates are now 8-1 and will continue in the Blue and Gold Tournament in Springfield as they were scheduled to take on Mt. Vernon last night.

Girls
    The Lady Pirates seemed to have found their groove again as they have made quick and easy work of their first two opponents in the Walnut Grove Holiday Classic.
    On Thursday, Dec. 23, the Lady Pirates defeated Greenfield, 51-19. Ash Grove jumped out to an 18-8 first quarter lead and increased that lead to 32-10 by the half.
    The Lady Pirates defense allowed just nine points in the second half, while scoring 19 of their own to cruise to the 32-point victory.
     Brittany Gilliland led Ash Grove with 18 points; Emma McClelland added 11, and Khloe Moad ended the game with 10 points.
    Ash Grove opened the tournament with a 57-42 win over Niangua on Tuesday, Dec. 21. It was a close game after the first quarter, with the Lady Pirates holding a slim 8-6 lead but their defense allowed only eight points in the second quarter, while they scored 20 points to lead 28-14 at the half.
    The Lady Pirates scored another 14 points in the third quarter to lead 42-30 heading into the fourth quarter of play. A 15-point fourth quarter sealed the game for Ash Grove as they pulled away with the 15-point victory.
    Moad led Ash Grove with 22 points. McClelland had 13 points and Gilliland added 12 points in the win.
    Ash Grove is now 6-4 on the season and were scheduled to play defense-minded Miller in a semifinal matchup in Walnut Grove last night.