JASON EPP
• Leader & Times
TURPIN, Okla.— It was a happy homecoming for the Turpin Lady Cardinals who used a second quarter run to take a lead they never gave up and took down the Beaver Lady Dusters, 41-36.
With five ties and six lead changes in the first twelve minutes, it was a back-and-forth battle as Turpin and Beaver traded buckets. In the first half, Mya Ortiz lead the Turpin attack with 13 points in the and the Lady Cardinals were a perfect 7 of 7 from the charity stripe. A 10-3 run over a three-minute stretch late in the second quarter gave Turpin a 24-20 lead at the half.
That run proved to be crucial as the two teams battled close in the second half. Beaver cut the Turpin lead to just two multiple times in the second half, but the Lady Cardinals answered the bell each time. A late 8-2 run by the Lady Dusters threatened one last time with Turpin leading just 38-36 with 2:34 left to play. But the Lady Cardinals defense did not allow another point, and Ortiz scored all seven points in the fourth quarter to keep Turpin out front for the five-point win.
Turpin was 9-38 from 2-point, 3-12 from three-point, and 14-19 from the line. Beaver was 15-43 from 2-point, 0-9 from three-point, and 6-8 from the line.
Ortiz finished with a game-high 20 points on 6 of 13 shooting and 7 of 10 from the line. Alissa Peters added 8.
For Beaver, Maecias Draper scored 10 points and Shylee Cline 9.
Turpin (8-5) are playing in the Buffalo Tournament to finish out the week. Because of weather concerns the tournament has been moved up to a Wednesday through Friday format.
