Turnovers Plague Vikings in Season Opener
KINSTON, NC — The Kinston Vikings girls' basketball team commenced their season with a challenging game, falling 71-35 to the formidable DH Conley team. Despite the tough loss at home, the game highlighted the team's resilience and potential under Coach Chris Bradshaw's direction.
Early Dominance by DH Conley
DH Conley, coming off a stellar 27-4 season, displayed their strength right from the start. They quickly took a commanding 15-4 lead in the first quarter, led by center Ella-Pierre Louis, who topped the scoring chart with 19 points.
Vikings' Battle Against Adversity
The Vikings grappled with ball control, resulting in 31 turnovers, a number Coach Bradshaw found unexpectedly high.
"31 turnovers, that's a lot in a basketball game," he remarked in a postgame interview, “"I didn't expect us to turn the basketball over as much as we did.”
Yet, Kinston did not waver in their resolve.
"They played a good second quarter, played an excellent third quarter," Bradshaw noted, acknowledging the team's efforts to reduce the deficit to 10 points twice, showing their fighting spirit and capability.
Key Performances in a Tough Game
Freshman Nashayla Mason led the scoring for Kinston with 9 points, marking a notable beginning to her high school career. Saniya White-Wooten contributed 7 points, while Kyonna Kelly and Carmen Davis each added 5 points.
Moving Forward Looking ahead, the Vikings' focus shifts to their next game against Jacksonville
The game plan remains firm on the fundamentals: solid defense, effective rebounding, and confident ball handling. Bradshaw sees early-season games against bigger and better schools as opportunities for growth.
"So now, they come to practice on Monday, now you can really turn the pressure up on them and get them ready for the next game."
Neuse News Sports Perspective
The season opener was a challenging start for the Kinston Vikings, but it also shed light on areas for improvement and the team's potential resilience. Listen loud and clear, this team is going to be a very good basketball team. Once they get rolling on all cylinders the Vikings will be a problem. Learning game.
Attention all local sports enthusiasts! Do you have insider information on your favorite local sports team? Submit to The Score below and let our team of experts bring it to life. Don't miss out on the chance to share what happened at your local sporting event - submit now and become part of the story!
Neuse News Sports is a locally-owned small business startup in downtown Kinston. Our goal is to cover all schools, all sports, and all athletes in Lenoir, Greene and Jones counties.
We provide this free sports news by having supportive advertisers and we encourage you to click on their ads, shop with them, and eat with them. Every bit of financial support is important to help us sustain free, hyper-local sports news.
Please consider supporting Neuse News Sports with as little as $5 one-time or via a monthly option. Every little bit helps us, help you.
