Encampment has 1-1 weekend before break

The Encampment Lady Tigers went 1-1 over the weekend as they hit the road to face the Lingle-Fort Laramie Lady Doggers and the Southeast Lady Cyclones. While Encampment secured a double-digit lead over the Lady Doggers, they would see victory narrowly evade them when they were hosted by the Lady Cyclones.

Lady Tigers vs Lady Doggers

The Lady Tigers went into their match against Lingle-Fort Laramie with two wins already under their belt, as they had dealt losses to the Dubois Lady Rams and the Cheyenne Central sophomores the weekend before. The Lady Doggers, for their part, had barely secured a win against Encampment's conference and Valley rivals, the Saratoga Lady Panthers, just a week before.

"I am proud of the girls as this was a very physical game and we were mentally strong enough to play through the contact and come out with a win," said Clint Bromley, head coach of the Lady Tigers. "It was a battle from start to finish."

In the end, however, Encampment would win the battle 51-41.

Cora Schroeder scored 14 points and had 8 rebounds against the Lady Doggers and was followed by Lizzi James with 12 points and 7 rebounds, Allison Bromley with 10 points and 4 steals and Shiann Finney with 9 points and 6 rebounds.

Lady Tigers vs Lady Cyclones

Following their win in Lingle-Fort Laramie, the Lady Tigers raced over to Yoder to be hosted by Southeast. Throughout most of the game, it appeared as if Encampment would go into their Christmas break with two wins as they led the Lady Cyclones as much as 6 points at half-time.

"I thought we played some of our best basketball of the season in the first half of this game but we ran out of gas in the second half and didn't finish the way we should have," C. Bromley said. "I felt the defensive effort was excellent holding Southeast to 34 points, but I felt we were resting on offense in the second half and not going as hard as we had in the first half."

While Encampment led at the end of the 3rd quarter, the Lady Cyclones reversed that lead with little more than a minute left in the game. Trailing by a single point, a three-point shot from Southeast with 7 seconds remaining would seal the Lady Tigers' fate.

Schroeder scored 8 points and had 5 rebounds and 5 assists. James followed with 7 points and 4 rebounds while A. Bromley scored 6 points and had 5 rebounds. Finney scored 5 points and had 5 rebounds.

The final score was 31-34.

"Playing two games in one day is always a test of your conditioning and I think this proves that we need to get stronger before the conference season begins," said C. Bromley.

With the 1-1 weekend prior to the holiday break, the Encampment Lady Tiger are 3-1 for the season. When they return, they will do so on the road as they face the 2A Pine Bluffs Lady Hornets at 4 p.m. on January 7 and the Hanna, Elk Mountain, Medicine Bow Lady Miners at 4 p.m. on January 8.