Alice Lloyd Eagles drain 16 trifectas, defeat Welch College

Pippa Passes, KY: On December 16th, the Alice Lloyd Eagles returned home to face the Welch College Flames. The hosts shot well from long distance, enroute to a 95-85 victory.

In the opening stanza, the Eagles got out to a blistering start, as they roared out to a 15-3 lead at 17:05. However, Welch refused to roll over. The Flames would go on a 29-17 burst of their own, and tie the score up at 32 with 9:48 remaining on the clock.

Sparked by the one-two punch of Isak Eriksson and Zaimes Hall, WC kept up their inspired play. With the score knotted at 37-37, the Tennesse crew would close the half with a 16-9 advantage. Even though the hosts sank 8 long bombs, the Flames would swish 9 to enter the dressing room holding a surprising 53-46 lead.

In the second half, the Pippa Passes club would claw back and tie the game at 65-65 on a bucket from senior guard Jared Strickland with 13:16. From there, the Eagles took off.

Over the space of just 4:19, the Pippa Passes posse would can 5 trifectas to fuel a 21-4 blitzkreig. Just like that, with 8:57 remaining to play. the Bluegrass bombers led 86-69. Although the Volunteer club continued to fight, the hosts would hold on until the final buzzer sounded, sealing the win.

 For Alice Lloyd (8-3), a trio of players would reach double-digits. They were led on the night by Strickland, who bagged 19 points on 8-11 field goals (3-6 triples). He also led the team with 8 rebounds and 5 assists.

 He was followed by junior guard Koji Anderson, who sank half of his 10 attempts (3-5 triples, 5-6 free throws) to finish with 18 points; he added 4 assists. Sophomore guard Landon Napier rammed in 4-7 triples of his own to finish with 15 points. He also handed out 4 assists.

In addition, senior guards Brady Nelson and Jacob Curry both chipped in with 9 points apiece. Nelson added 4 assists while Curry grabbed 6 rebounds.

On the day, the Caney Creek crew finished at 50% (33-66) from the field, including 44.4%  (16-36) from beyond the arc. Uncharacteristically, they also hit only 69.1% (13-22) from the charity stripe. They also finished with with 36 rebounds, handed out 21 assists and swiped 9 steals. 

WC (1-10) was led by Hall and Eriksson with 17 points apiece. Their squad shot 38.5% (25-65) from the field, 43.3% (13-30) from beyond the arc and 75.9% (22-29) from the foul line. Additionally, they snared 45 rebounds, handed off 16 assists, and stole 5 balls. 

The Eagles return home on December 20th to face the Campbellsville Harrodsburg Pioneers. Tipoff is set for 3:00 p.m.