BENTON – Benton senior Abby Clay hit a 3-pointer to tie Bryant 15-15 with just over two minutes in the first half, but Lady Hornets sophomore Raija Todd hit two free throws to end the half with a two-point lead and Bryant never trailed again beating its rivals 40-32 Thursday night at Benton Arena.
Todd, who led all scorers with 18 points, opened the second half with a three assisted by junior Destiny Martin for a 20-15 lead, but Clay’s three assisted by senior Taylor Oglesby tied it 20-20 with 5:55 left in the third quarter.
“Abby’s been doing that in practice and she’s about the only perimeter player that looked comfortable out there,” Benton Head Coach Jerry Chumley said. “She knocked down some big shots for us and there’s no question she kept us in the game. We just needed more production from other players.”
Clay led Benton with 16 points, hitting four 3-pointers, but senior guard Emily Ridgell’s three and another Todd three put Bryant up 26-22 with 3:22 left in the third.
“I thought our man-to-man defense was pretty good,” Chumley said. “Probably where I messed up was we went zone to start the second half. To their credit, Bryant hit three threes while we were playing zone. It kind of gave them some mojo and gave their best player some confidence. After Todd hit a couple of those shots, she became more confident and started playing really well.”
Benton sophomore Italei Gray scored a layup to get the Lady Panthers within two, but Bryant countered with a 14-0 run began by senior Rachael Miller’s offensive rebound and put back, and led 40-24 with 2:17 left in the game before Benton hit some late shots.
“It’s our first game,” Bryant Head Coach Brad Matthews said. “There was a lot of rust out there, a little excitement, especially when you play Benton; everything’s a little different whey you play Benton. Overall we had a little bit better second half. There’s a lot of things we can go back and work on."