Earle girls defeat Marked Tree for 1A-3 crown

JONESBORO - Marked Tree girls finished as runner-up in the district tournament final when they fell to Earle 66-56 Monday. Lady Bulldogs all-conference center Jada Staples was critical to the victory, scoring 29 points and disrupting several shots in the paint. Fellow all-conference player Journey Jefferson aided her performance with a 17-point outing. The Lady Indians had three players finish in double digits, as Zyonna Anderson led with 16 points, Lakrissa Dupree posted 14 points, and Journi Versie tallied 12 points.

The Bulldogs pulled ahead in the first period as Staples and Jefferson got off to a hot start. They combined for 17 of Earle’s 22 first-quarter points. Jefferson hit a pair of threes during this time scoring 10 points. Marked Tree couldn’t find the same success offensively and managed just nine points. Anderson accounted for six of the points.

Despite the early 13-point hole, Marked Tree pulled a bit closer before halftime, as Earle’s scoring cooled off. They outscored the Bulldogs 14-8 in the second quarter. Versie took charge inside, scoring six points and drawing a pair of trips to the free throw line. Anderson found her in the post late in the half, and her bucket brought the score to 30-23 at half.

Earle would strike first in the second half. Madison Dunn received the ball as she cut through the lane and scored through contact. She converted the free throw to extend the lead to double digits. Staples applied pressure. She came up with a steal for a fastbreak layup and then knocked down back-to-back pull up jumpers inside the arc. Marked Tree had to call timeout just two minutes into the half, as the deficit doubled to 14.

Coming out of the timeout, Alyssa McGuire buried a three in the corner. Jefferson came back with a three and then a few plays later, McGuire drained another three from the same spot. With five seconds left in the half, Anderson pushed the ball and pulled up for a near-30 foot shot as she drifted left. Indians fans in attendance erupted as the shot found the net at the buzzer. Her shot made it 48-40 in favor of the Bulldogs.

After scoring eight points in the third quarter, Staples continued her dominance to close out the game. Her put back shot resulted in a three-point play she converted at the line. That play put Earle ahead 60-47 with three minutes to play. Marked Tree could not pull closer than 10 points away from that point, and Staples iced the game with a pair of successful trips to the free throw line in the dying embers.

Marked Tree coach Colten Frazier reflected on his team’s run in the tournament. “We got off to a slow start to the tournament on Saturday,” he said. “We did the same thing tonight. We had too many turnovers, allowed too many offensive rebounds, and we shot 9 of 20 from the free throw line. You won’t win many games against good teams shooting 9 of 20 from the line. I think that was the story of the game.”