Girls basketball: Leesburg High takes another step with first win of season

BUSHNELL — One step at a time.

Thats how Leesburg High School girls basketball coach Mark Oates describes the progression he expects from his team over the course of the season.

One of those steps for the Yellow Jackets, undoubtedly, was to win their first game.

They accomplished that goal in Thursday’s game at South Sumter. Leesburg outscored the Raiders 16-7 in the second half, pulling away in the fourth quarter for a 31-22 win.

“Thank you, Jesus,” Oates said after the win. “Each game this season, we’ve gotten a little better at the little things. Clearly, we still have a lot of work to do and we’ll start cleaning those things at practice.

“Now, these girls know they can compete. They’ve worked and played hard at every practice and game we’ve had, and this was the reward for all that hard work and effort. I’m so proud of them.”

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With the win, Leesburg improved to 1-6 on the season. South Sumter, which played the game without top scorer Daija Rocker as well as Camari Patterson, both of whom were out of town, fell to 3-3.

Leesburg rallied late in first half, tied at halftime

It didn’t seem that South Sumter would need Rocker and Patterson for much of the first half. The Raiders benefitted from turnovers on each of Leesburg’s first four possessions to take an early lead, an advantage that grew to as many as six points in the second quarter.

However, the Yellow Jackets closed the first half on a roll and forged a 15-15 tie at intermission. It marked the first time this season Leesburg headed to the locker room with a share of the lead.

One step.

“They got more comfortable with the flow of the game as it wore on,” said Oates. “This was a team they could compete with and they began executing better. They got down early, but they kept fighting and that can often be the difference.”

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After the break, the Yellow Jackets — simply put — outplayed the Raiders. Both teams were sluggish in the opening minutes of the third quarter — neither team scored for the first 4 minutes, 12 seconds of the period — and Leesburg didn’t take its first lead until Zaria Wright scored at the two-minute mark for a 17-16 advantage.

The teams exchanged the lead five times in the final two minutes before the Yellow Jackets secured a 21-20 advantage heading into the fourth quarter — the first time this season Leesburg led after a quarter.

In the final eight minutes, Leesburg pulled away, putting together its most productive period of the year. The Yellow Jackets outscored South Sumter 10-2, often taking advantage of eight Raiders turnovers in the period.

Kyrah Bryant scored five points in the fourth quarter for Leesburg, while Wright and Macey Campbell (2 points apiece), and (Ah'mour Lynum (1 point) also contributed offensively.

The game was not always aesthetically pleasing, particularly to basketball purists.

Leesburg and South Sumter committed 58 turnovers — 30 by Leesburg and 28 by the Raiders. Neither team shot better than 30% from the field and the only 3 pointer came midway through the fourth quarter when Bryant boosted the Yellow Jackets to a 28-21 advantage.

However, it was a competitive contest with two ties and 10 lead changes.

Lynum and Sydney Price paced Leesburg with eight points apiece. Bryant finished with five, Wright and Campbell added four points apiece and Porter Bridges scored two.

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South Sumter was led by Lanasia Dority with nine points. Kainen Solomon dropped in five and four players —Cayle Pitts, Tania Worthen, Daekira James, and Taliyah Mullins scored two points apiece.

“At this point, we’re about small victories,” said Oates. “And the girls know they’re getting better. The other night, they were all excited, ‘Coach, we made a bounce pass tonight.’

“This is such a fun team to be around, watching them work in practice and taking such pride when they realize they’ve accomplished something new.”

This article originally appeared on Daily Commercial: Leesburg girls hoops takes first win of the season against South Sumter