East Rankin Academy sophomore Abigail Stevens put Pillow Academy on upset alert in the first round of the North 5A tournament Tuesday at Heritage Academy.
A 6-foot-2 forward with an offer from Mississippi College, Stevens dominated the paint against the top-seeded Lady Mustangs to bring her No. 4 Lady Patriots back within one possession midway through the third quarter. Then Pillow’s own superstar scorer caught fire.
With the Lady Mustangs’ lead trimmed down to 31-29, senior guard Madeline Mattox halted the run with back-to-back 3-pointers, part of a 14-point third quarter that helped Pillow hang on for a 65-56 win against ERA.
Mattox finished with 21 points, four rebounds and three steals for the Lady Mustangs (27-4), who extended their winning streak to 12 games.
Sarah Presley Howard had 15 points and five steals, and Georgia Caroline Self also tallied 15 points as it took a team effort to spoil an insane stat line by Stevens, who totaled 38 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and two blocks in the Lady Patriots’ loss.
Mattox and Self scored all 23 Pillow points in the third quarter, securing a 17-point cushion entering the final frame. But Stevens and ERA weren’t done yet. They stormed back in the fourth quarter, cutting their deficit to 57-51, a two-possession game with 1:15 remaining.
Howard came up clutch down the stretch, scoring nine points in the frame — including seven from the free throw line — to help seal the Lady Mustangs’ victory.
The high-scoring battle marked the first time Pillow’s stout defense has surrendered 50 points since a Dec. 28 loss to MRA.
Pillow advances to the North 5A semifinals to face Simpson Academy, the No. 2 seed from District 2, on Friday at 6:30 p.m.
- Contact Riley Overend at 662-581-7237 or roverend@gwcommonwealth.com. Follow @OverendOut on Twitter.
