The Ypsilanti Courier
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Lady Flyers taking off
Team has too much power for Taylor Kennedy team.
By Tom Perkins, Special Writer
PUBLISHED: February 7, 2008
Even with a shortened bench, Willow Run Lady Flyers surpassed last season's win count and is continuing to make strides.
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The latest victory came on a late fourth quarter surge that put the Flyers ahead of Taylor Kennedy 43-35.
"I'm encouraged. We have one more win than we had last year, which is an improvement," head coach Anthony Davis said. "I think we're a better team today than we were at the beginning of the season. I'm just trying to get the girls to buckle down."
The Flyers (7-9, 4-5 Mega) faced the Eagles with just seven players following a transfer and two ineligibilities, but Davis was happy with how his team came off the block and grabbed an 11-6 advantage.
"We definitely controlled the tempo at the beginning," he said.
The momentum didn't carry into the second quarter — sloppy play and four straight turnovers let Kennedy back in the game, and the teams headed to the lockeroom knotted at 18.
"That's been a big problem for us," Davis said. "We don't turn over the ball a whole lot, but when we do it's in spurts three four at a time."
Successive turnovers have led to momentum shifts and ultimately a bad quarter which changed the outcome of previous games, Davis said.
"I was looking at my books, and it has been one quarter that has killed us in each of our losses," he said.
This time the Flyers held on down the stretch, trading blows until the last minute of play when Shania Calhoun made five of six free throw attempts.
"It came down to free throws and we made them," Davis said. "That's been one of our weak points all year, so I was pretty happy about her making those."
The Flyers worsened the shortened bench problem with late foul trouble, which forced Davis to constantly sub and play zone defense.
"The last two or three minutes I subbed our two bench players every time there was a dead ball," he said.
Kennedy also faced foul trouble of their own, for which Davis credits the play of Anotnice Strickland.
"She was big for us," he said. "She got a lot of their big players in foul trouble."
Strickland finished with 13 points, 17 rebounds and seven steals.
Tom Perkins is a freelance writer for the View/Courier. He can be reached at trperkins@gmail.com.
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