Former Texas men's basketball coach Abe Lemmons once said: "There are really only two plays: Romeo and Juliet and put the darn ball in the basket." The first part of that quote is certainly debatable, but the second part is certainly true in a basketball game. The ball really does have to go through that net attached to the rim for a team to be successful. After a good first quarter start and a four point lead at halftime, the ACGC girls' basketball team hit a disastrous third quarter which let Madrid eventually come away with a 51-42 victory in the opening WCAC game.

After allowing the visiting Tigers only one field goal in the first quarter, and making five themselves, the Chargers found themselves with a 13-6 lead after the first stanza. Unfortunately they could not sustain that shooting, as they hit only eight field goals the rest of the game. The shooting slump began in the second quarter when the Chargers converted on just 2 of 11 attempts. Still, the Chargers held a 19-15 lead at the halftime break.

In the third quarter the momentum switched completely to the Tigers as they outscored ACGC 19-9 to take a 34-28 lead, while holding the Chargers to 3 of 10 shooting from the field and causing numerous ACGC turnovers (23 for the game) with their zone press. After Madrid increased the lead to 44-34 in the fourth quarter, the Chargers made a run to close the gap to 44-40 only to see Madrid convert on enough free throws down the stretch to claim the win.

Following the game Charger mentor Aaron Dose said, "I was not happy with our shot selection tonight. I thought we rushed our shots on offense. Fortunately our defense kept us in the game and the late surge gave us a chance. I was glad to see that the girls did not give up." Noting the twenty three turnovers Dose commented, "Moving forward, we need to find girls who are comfortable with the ball in their hands."

Morgan Meachem recorded a double double as she netted 12 points and 11 rebounds. No other player was in double figures, with Lauryn Embleton coming close with 9 points. Maddy Smith had 7 rebounds and also led in steals with 4. As a team the Chargers converted on 14 of 61 shots for 23%, while hitting on only 3 of 20 three point attempts.

The loss dropped the season record to 0-2 and 0-1 in WCAC play. The Chargers will next see action this Friday, Dec. 1 at Ogden. Tipoff for the girl's is 6 PM, with the boys' game to follow.

Score by Quarters: ACGC Bos Score:

Madrid 6 9 19 17--51 Reb

ACGC 13 6 9 14-42 FG 3 Pt FT Off-Def Asts Stls TP

Fuller 1-1 0-0 1-2 1-2 1 1 3

Smith 1-11 0-5 0-0 4-3 2 4 2

Embleton 3-13 2-9 1-3 2-3 0 0 9

Laabs 0-5 0-0 0-0 2-2 2 2 0

O'Brien 3-14 1-4 0-0 0-0 1 1 7

Young 1-5 0-0 4-4 2-3 2 0 6

Carrick 1-3 0-1 1-2 0-3 0 0 3

Sargent 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-0 0 0 0

Meachem 4-8 0-0 4-8 3-8 0 3 12

Hoover 0-1 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0