Bryson swept play in the Dragon Tournament at Chico with four wins this weekend.
Brief summaries of both games follow:
Bryson 31, Forestburg 21
The Cowgirls struggled with the 9 am start, shooting just 18% from the floor and 29% from the free throw line but got the win.
Forestburg used six Madisen Deason points to get out to an early 6-3 lead as Bryson was 1-10 shooting over the first four minutes and change. Cowgirl senior Riley Valliant caught with a pair of late buckets and a free throw for an 8-6 lead after one.
Valliant got some help from fellow senior Allie Orr as the lead went up to 16-6 early in the second. Bryson did a tremendous job in offensive rebounding in the frame, helping the team to a 26-12 first half advantage on the boards.
Despite the Cowgirls missing their last eight shots from the floor in a 4-20 shooting quarter, the Lady ‘Horns couldn’t cut into the deficit, going 1-10 shooting themselves. Bryson shot 19% from the field in the first half and still led 19-9 at halftime.
Neither team scored for the first 3:28 of the second half, Orr ending the drought with a basket. Forestburg got on the board with less than two minutes left but Bryson countered with a Braydee Thorne bucket as the Cowgirls took a 23-13 lead into the final stanza.
Missing its first eight shots from the field in the fourth, the Cowgirls were still able to extend their lead on free throws from Valliant. Tracy Hauger and Thorne later added baskets, the only ones in a 2-17 shooting frame, to extend the lead to 12.
Forestburg added some Braylee Briles free throws late but it wasn’t enough. Valliant paced Bryson with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Briles led Forestburg with eight points with Deason adding six.
Bryson 46, Electra 29
A 14-5 offensive uprising in the fourth made this game seem more lopsided than it really was.
Electra missed its last 10 shots of the game, enabling Bryson to break away. The Lady Tigers had drawn within 28-24 late in the third before buckets from Valliant and Orr doubled the advantage to close the quarter.
Valliant started the fourth with a pair of buckets and free throws, each bucket coming on a putback, to extend the lead into double figures for the first time since 18-5 early in the second. A Thorne three-pointer gave Bryson its biggest lead to that point with 2:50 to go.
Cold shooting was Electra’s M.O. throughout the game but the Lady Tigers managed to stay within striking distance throughout the middle quarters. Bryson got out to a 5-0 lead in the first minute on a Valliant bucket and Orr three-pointer. Electra got within one before Bryson closed on a 7-0 run with Hauger and Valliant points for a 12-4 lead after one.
Three-pointers from Hanna Perez and Orr extended the lead to 13 midway through the second. Buckets and free throws from Macy Marsh and Thelma McGee late, however, would cut the halftime deficit to 20-14.
The lead continued to fluctuate in the third frame, Valliant and Mc-Gee trading baskets. Valliant had a 10 points shooting frame and got some help from Orr as the Cowgirls took a 3224 lead into the fourth quarter.
Valliant had 27 points and 18 boards to lead Bryson. Marsh paced Electra with 13 tallies.
Bryson 50, Midway 17
Orr caught fire to close the first half of the Friday game and the Cowgirls rode the senior guard to a revenge victory over the Lady Falcons.
Midway had defeated Bryson (5-5) 38-25 in the season opener Nov. 11. This one was all Cowgirls after Bryson broke a 2-all tie with an 8-0 run late in the first. Three points each from Hanna Perez and Valliant along with a Hauger bucket put the Blue ahead to stay.
Bryson took advantage of a Lady Falcon squad that was out of sorts all game, missing 10 shots in a row during the aforementioned run. The Cowgirls, which opened the second frame 0-6 shooting, put the lead into double figures with a pair of Valliant buckets for a 16-6 lead with 2:35 left in the half.
Still, it was Orr’s trey from the top of the key to close the half that fueled the second half for Bryson which led 21-8 at intermission. Orr continued the momentum with another three-pointer and a drive inside after a steal to extend the lead to 18 in the first minute and change of the third.
Valliant added a couple of baskets to move the lead into the 20s as part of an 8-19 shooting quarter for the Blue. Thorne and Hauger added buckets late as did freshman Morgan Eberle as the Cowgirls took a 39-13 lead into the fourth quarter.
Bryson missed its first eight shots of the final frame before Orr converted back-toback threes to get the offense going again. Reserve post Brooke Bennett close the 33% shooting game (20-60) with consecutive buckets down low.
On the strength of five three-pointers, Orr tossed in a game-high 17 points and added six rebounds. Valliant added 16 tallies with 11 boards for the Cowgirls.
Bryson 51, Chico 47
The Cowgirls completed the sweep with their win over the host Lady Dragons. No further details were available.
