On Tuesday night, Juab came to town to face the Lady Spartans in their region opener. The Wasps (6-1) were not in control for the first three quarters of the game. Emery played hard and shared the ball well, getting the easy buckets. The score was 48-33 at the end of the third, and the game seemed like an easy win for the Lady Spartans.
The Wasps’ coach switched tactics and had his girls go into a full court press, with intense, smothering defense. They would put pressure on Emery to make passes that if not timed right, made it easier for Juab to hit the ball and knock it off course, leading to multiple steals.
The Lady Spartans panicked a bit as the Wasps went on a huge fourth quarter run, bringing them within a win in the final minute. Both teams had used up their timeouts as the Lady Spartans had one last opportunity to tie it, but they fell short, 61-58, in a hard-fought comeback by Juab.
Kennadie Maughan made an impressive 82% of her shots, scoring 20 points. She completed a double-double with 15 rebounds as well. Ailya Lester was a deadeye from three-point land, going 4-6, ending the game with 16 points. Karleigh Stilson shared the ball well, getting five assists to add to her 10 points and two steals.
The Lady Spartans (5-4, 0-1 Region 12) will face region foe Delta (3-4) on Thursday night. Then, on Tuesday, they will host the Richfield Wildcats (5-3), which will be broadcast live at 7 p.m. on etvnews.com/livesports.