TOMPKINSVILLE—Monroe County got off to somewhat of a stagnant start on Tuesday night, as the Lady Falcons led Franklin-Simpson just 5-2 at the 2:50 mark of the first quarter.
But it didn’t take the Lady Falcons too much longer to shake the cobwebs off in their first game of the season.
Senior Ashley Gearlrds poured in 19 points, junior Grace Turner added 14, and Monroe County rolled to a 60-41 victory over Franklin-Simpson in Tompkinsville.
“The girls came out and played with a lot of heart and hustle,” first-year Monroe County head coach Clifton Hamilton said. “They played with confidence, and that’s all I ask. I give a lot of credit to Franklin-Simpson. They came out and played hard to force our girls into a faster style of play.”
The Lady Falcons (1-0) outscored the Lady Wildcats to take a commanding 33-13 lead into the locker room. Turner scored 12 of her 14 points in the first half, with many of the buckets coming by the way of fast break points.
Monroe County continued to dominate in the third frame, outscoring Franklin-Simpson 19-8 to own a 52-21 edge after three. Gearlds scored nine points in the period, netting five-of-six shots at the charity stripe.
Franklin-Simpson did cut into the deficit somewhat by outscoring Monroe County 20-8 in the fourth behind freshman Kate Norwood’s 13 consecutive points, but that damage was done after Hamilton took out his starters with 5:40 left in regulation.
Gearlds led Monroe County with 19 points while Turner added 14. Seventh grader Paisley Ford also tallied 11 points for the Lady Falcons off the bench.
As a team the Lady Falcons hit 16-of-22 free throws for a respectable 72.7 percent.
The Lady Wildcats were led by Norwood with 16 points (13 in fourth quarter), and fellow freshman Alera Barbee chalked up 13.
Overall Hamilton was pleased with the way his team performed in the first game of the season after losing several seniors to graduation.
“It’s a process,” Hamilton said. “My goal is to never place anybody who graduated last year. My goal is to take the girls I have and make them believe in the themselves the way I way I believe in them, and to come out and compete at the highest level.”
The Lady Falcons will look to continue their success at Metlcafe County on Fridaynight. Meanwhile Franklin-Simpson will look to record the first win of the season at home versus Greenwood on Thursday night.
