Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Hendrix, Stockton Say Farewell With Win Over Nashville

Traci Graham did not have mononucleosis as previously reported.

Nashville's senior girls, however, were wishing she did Friday night as the Wolverettes hammered the Scrapperettes 59-28.

No matter what Nashville did, Graham countered, turning Scrapperette mistakes into Prescott points. She finished the night with 16, including a pair of threes.

It was also a night of sadness as the two seniors on the team played their final home game. Stacy Stockton and Jessica Hendrix were honored at the start of the game.

Once the pre-game ceremonies ended and the game got underway, the Wolverettes set about having a good time. They were loose during their warmup when they were just having fun.

Prescott took the opening tip. Two passes later the Wolverettes had two points by Graham.

Graham followed this with a trey on Prescott's next possession, while the Scrapperettes were wondering what hit them.

At the 6:11 point in the first quarter, Prescott led 7-0, with Nashville reeling.

The Wolverettes were near perfect on offense, while the defense had the Scrapperettes confused. The press forced turnovers, with the turnovers converted into points for Prescott.

While Graham was putting on a scoring clinic, Andrea Cossey displayed her passing skills. Cossey's passes drew cheers from the crowd, while the Nashville team wondered where the ball was headed.

Period one ended with Prescott leading 22-5.

The Scrapperettes did their best to slow the pace of the game down, but were unable to control the contest.

This night belonged to Prescott's senior girls.

The Wolverettes opened the second quarter with a 10-0 run to push their lead to 32-5 with 4:46 showing on the clock.

Prescott was merciless on defense as well, smelling the win and moving in for the kill as they pressed and trapped Nashville ball handlers.

When the Scrapperettes tried to hold the ball, Prescott's girls waited for their chance and when a mistake was made, it was off to the races.

The question, as the second period wound down, was whether or not Nashville would score again before halftime. The Scrapperette's only points came from the free throw line in the quarter as Prescott's defense pitched a shutout from the field.

Nashville's offense showed signs of life in the third quarter as the team posted 13 points on the board.

Still, though, the Scrapperettes had fits with Prescott's tenacious defense.

Prescott Coach Bill Cossey, with a 41-13 lead at the 4:49 mark, began substituting players in and out. Throughout the game, he had subbed Hendrix and Amanda Hodges for one another at the inside post position.

Hendrix, utilized her playing time well defensively as she fought off Scrapperettes to pull down rebounds.

Nashville never got in the game, even though Prescott slowed the pace and made some mental mistakes. The press was called off as the Wolverettes were firmly in command 48-17 with 2:05 left.

Quarter three ended with Prescott leading 54-20 and Cossey working to get everyone into the game.

As the final eight minutes began, the only question remaining was what the final score would be. Everyone in the gym knew which team would emerge with the win.

Cossey continued mass substitutions, with the exception of Stockton, who stayed in until the final few minutes.

Stockton did what she normally does in games played with the fearlessness and intensity of an NFL middle linebacker, taking her licks and dishing out a few in the bargain.

Stockton finished her final home contest as the game's leading scorer with 19 points.

When she was pulled from the game the realization finally hit of this being the last time she would play basketball in this gymnasium.

After the game she said it didn't dawn on her this was her final home game as she was busy playing ball and working for the win.

The team's final goal, she said, is ending her prep career at the Pine Bluff Convention Auditorium Saturday, March 13, with a state title.

In spite of the starters being out of the game for Prescott, Nashville's girls still had trouble scoring.

Prescott's subs hustled after the ball and harassed the Scrapperettes to make the most of their time on the hardwood.

The Wolverettes hit eight of 12 free throws, while Nashville was a woeful eight for 20 at the line.

Latesha Anderson and Julie Falcinelli led Nashville with seven each.

The Wolverettes will end their regular season with a long road trip to Mena with the conference title on the line.

Mena, Friday night, posted a 47-33 win over the Fordyce senior girls.

In senior boys action, Prescott whipped Nashville 68-61, with seniors Scott Hobbs and Brandon Wilson scoring 14 each in their final home game.

With the trip to Mena Friday night, the Curley Wolves have a shot at second place in the conference as the Bearcats fell to Fordyce 68-56 in their Feb. 5 game.

The 7-AAA District Tournament begins next week at Fouke, with the regional tournament scheduled for the week of Feb. 22-27 at Hamburg. The AAA state tourney will be held at Fountain Lake High School this year.