Willard Lady Tigers go 2-2 in Pink & White play

Tiger basketballers top Fair Grove, take fifth place in Blue & Gold
 
Over the holiday season, the Willard High School boys’ and girls’ basketball teams played tournaments in Springfield, with the girls’ in the Pink & White Tournament and the boys in the Blue & Gold Tournament.
Girls
For the girls, it was a middling tournament, as they went 2-2, and finished in sixth place in the White Division.
The Lady Tigers fell to El Dorado Springs, 48-16, in the fifth-place game on Thursday, Dec. 30. El Dorado Springs led 17-6 after the first quarter and 36-12 at the half.
The Lady Tigers reached the fifth-place game after a thrilling 72-66 win over Blue Eye, Wednesday, Dec. 29. Willard trailed 22-9 after the first quarter but bounced back to score 18 points in the second quarter to cut the lead to 34-27 heading into the half. Good defense in the third quarter allowed Willard to outscore Blue Eye, 15-9, cutting their lead to 43-42, heading into the final quarter of
play.
In the fourth, Willard exploded for 30 points to finally take the lead and put Blue Eye away, winning by six points. Brielle Adamson led Willard with 35 points and Carolina Crawford added 12 points in the win.
The Lady Tigers lost for the second time this season to eventual tourney winner Strafford, 67-36, on Tuesday, Dec. 28. Adamson led Willard with 18 points. Willard opened the tournament with a 61-50 win over Springfield Catholic on Monday, Dec. 27. Adamson led Willard with 16 points and Kailyn Washington added 14 points in the victory.
Willard is now 6-5 on the season and was scheduled to play at Lebanon last night before hosting Springfield Parkview tomorrow night.
Boys
On the boys’ side, Willard took fifth place in the Blue Division with a 75-58 win over Fair Grove on Thursday, Dec. 30. The Tigers took care of Branson, 62-43 on Wednesday, Dec. 29 to reach that
game.
Willard lost to Hartville, 47-41, on Tuesday, Dec. 28, Hayden Brown led Willard with 17 points and Trey Pulford added 10 points in the loss. The Tigers opened the tournament on Monday, Dec. 27, with a 71-50 win over West Plains.
The Tigers are now 9-4 on the season and will start the second half of their season when they travel to Bolivar, Friday night.