From The Tribune staff reports
MOODY — The Moody Lady Blue Devils were looking to recover after a poor showing Tuesday night against St. Clair County. And recover, they did. The Springville Lady Tigers brought an 8-2 record to Moody on Friday with hopes of continuing their winning ways, but the Lady Devils had different plans.
“We looked as good tonight as we did bad Tuesday night,” said Moody coach Becca Davis.
The first quarter was a close one with Moody edging out the Lady Tigers 11-10. For Moody, Kendall Stephens owned the paint and scored 4 points while Tori Pyles had 4 of her own with a three-pointer and a made free throw. For Springville, Audrey Taylor hit a pair of threes to lead her team in scoring in the first frame.
Moody would create a little more distance in the second quarter, scoring 13 and holding Springville to another 10-point period. Bella Bullington led the Tigers with 6 points in the quarter while 7th grader Serenity Rutledge led Moody with 6 points, followed closely by Pyles who had 5 of her own.
“Serenity Rutledge played up with us tonight. Having her on the roster gave us a spark and allowed everyone to do the things they do best,” Coach Davis said. The half would end with Moody leading 24-20.
The third quarter would continue to be a dog fight between two great teams with Moody keeping the upper hand and putting up 14 points to Springville’s 13. Springville’s Farrah Hawkins would hit a pair of threes for her team while Abby Byrd would score 5 points. For Moody, Rutledge would prove that calling her up for this game was a good idea, scoring half of her team’s points (7) for the quarter.
The final stanza of the game would actually be advantage Springville, but only by one point (11-10), which would not be enough to overcome the lead that Moody had built to that point. Hawkins would have 10 of those 11 points for Springville. Pyles would add 4 points for Moody to close out the game with a final of 50-44.
Springville’s leading scorers were Farrah Hawkins with 18 points and Bella Bullington with 8 points. Moody was led by Tori Pyles, who had 18 herself, and Serenity Rutledge who had 15 points.
“It was a great night for Moody basketball,” Coach Davis said.
Moody heads into a Christmas break with a 6-4 record while Springville falls to 8-3.
