Jan 19, 2007 By Bobby Fox 3 min read

JEFFERSON – Prior to the tip off of their big Section 2-A showdown with Mapletown on Thursday night, the Jefferson-Morgan Lady Rockets were fighting a case of nerves. It was up to first-year head coach Larry Craft to give them a pep talk. “They were a little nervous and I told them you could play with any one in the conference and they proved it tonight,” Craft said.

Apparently, Craft’s players listened.

The Lady Rockets dominated nearly every aspect of the game and looked impressive in a 58-38 victory. The win leapfrogged J-M (3-1, 8-7) into second place in the section. The loss dropped Mapletown (3-2, 9-6) into third.

“This was a big win,” Craft said. “Anytime you can take the first one off of anybody it helps out a lot. It was a big confidence builder for these girls.”

Jefferson-Morgan led from start to finish of the contest and outscored their opponents in every quarter but one. Both teams scored seven points in the second period.

Just like in their last victory over Carmichaels on Jan. 11, Jefferson utilized a balanced scoring attack to overwhelm their opponents. Three J-M players reached double digits on the night and a fourth poured in nine.

The attack was led by Ashley Phillips who racked up 16 points in the win. Rachel Weaver (12) and Lindsay Olson (11) were the other double-digit scorers on the night. Sarah Olson chipped in nine.

“That’s what helps a lot,” Craft said. “When we can put three kids out there that score double figures, it’s hard for teams to beat us.”

Jefferson-Morgan got another shot in the arm with the return of Weaver, a fiery center who had been benched for the previous few games due to a suspension.

The senior matched up well with Mapletown’s star underneath, Brittany Buckhalter, and limited her scoring chances.

“It was a big lift,” Craft said. “The kids showed that they could play without Rachel, but with her back now, we’re more dimensional.”

Overall, seven different players scored for the victorious Lady Rockets.

On the other bench, Mapletown head coach Linda Shultz was pretty much speechless after her team’s disappointing loss.

“There’s not much of anything to say,” Shultz said. “We never got in our rhythm. It’s really discouraging to see that after we thought we had some problems solved.”

The Lady Maples had won six-of-seven games before the loss and looked like the team to beat in the section behind powerhouse Geibel.

While Jefferson-Morgan got big scoring nights from all five starters, Mapletown had just one player score in double figures in Buckhalter. The six-foot senior, who was playing ill and had to be medicated heavily before the game, poured in 16 points and recorded eight rebounds in the loss.

Bethany Ross added nine, but after that, the next leading scorer was Erika Chory with six points.

Jefferson-Morgan is off today and will gear up for a stiff non-section test as Avella comes to town on Saturday. Mapletown, meanwhile, has to regroup quickly for a big non-section challenge in the form of a road trip to Bentworth later tonight.