Allen County women’s basketball traveled to Labette on Wednesday and fell to the Cardinals 79-66.
With the defeat, the Lady Devils now are 2-2.
Allen got off to a good start against the full court pressure of Labette and attacked the middle for easy buckets.
Sophomore guard Katelyn Swanson got hot from behind the arc, hitting two threes in the first quarter. However, late in the quarter, foul trouble started and the Lady Devils had three players go to the bench one after another.
Even so, Allen only was down 4 at the end of the first quarter.
The second quarter was ugly. Allen turned the ball over multiple times and those turnovers turned into transition points for Labette. The Cardinals outscored Allen 21-9 to close out the half. The Lady Devils trailed 43-27 at halftime.
The second half was up and down for Allen as it battled back to stay in the game. Tamera Shaver led the charge with her strong defense and attacks on offense, along with the help of Destiny Pittman and Akia Andrews. Back-to-back three-point baskets by Akia Andrews and Swanson sparked a nice comeback late in the game.
The Lady Devils cut the lead in the fourth quarter to 5 points but could not get over the hump. Several missed layups and lack of defense led to Labette taking the win.
Allen was led by Tamera Shaver with 17 points while Destiny Pittman added 9. Katelyn Swanson added 8, Akia Andrews scored 7 and Alecia Verge scored 6.
The ladies will start conference play this Saturday against Coffeyville at home at 2 p.m.
PHOTO: Sophomore guard Katelyn Swanson shoots a free throw in the Lady Devils 79-66 loss at Labette CC on Wednesday. Photo courtesy of the Parsons Sun
