Heathwood Hall’s Lauren Jacobs shoots over Hammond’s Samira Khalil. Photo by Mike Maddock
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Heathwood Hall’s Lauren Jacobs scored a game-high 37 points as the Highlanders defeated the Hammond Skyhawks 66-45 Tuesday, January 17.
“One thing she has learned this year is staying poised,” Heathwood Hall head coach Brionna Zimmerman said. “She’s learned to step in when we need her to or facilitate when we need her to do that. She’s really learning that and mastering that for us. I’ve been really proud of her with her shot selection, going up strong knowing she’s not going to get some of the calls, finishing the buckets anyway, and getting to the free throw line. She’s really been working on those things at practice, and it shows in the game.”
Heathwood Hall jumped out to a 6-0 lead with a layup from Jacobs and a jumper and bucket from Sabreya Monsanto.
Hammond answered with two 3-pointers, a layup, and a free throw from Samira Khalil, two free throws from Kayce Hyman, and two layups from Anna Katherine Adams to take a 15-12 lead at the end of the first quarter.
A pair of layups from Jacobs put the Highlanders back on top 16-15. Adams connected on a jumper to put the Skyhawks ahead by a point. Virginia Bowers hit a long two to give Heathwood Hall an 18-17 lead. Hammond answered with a bucket and one from Khalil to jump ahead 20-18.
From there, Jacobs scored seven of Heathwood’s nine points. The Skyhawks got a 3-pointer from Khalil and layups from Hyman, Rebecca Waites, and Hailey Inman to tie the score 29-29 at halftime.
As good as the second quarter was for Jacobs, the third was even better. She scored 16 points for Heathwood as the Highlanders led 48-39 at the end of three. The only other Lady Highlander to score was Abby Mullins with a 3-pointer.
Hammond got four points from Khalil and three each from Hyman and Sophie Stephens.
“We needed defensive stops,” Zimmerman said. “I think we did a better job of eliminating their go to and that was Samira. She’s an awesome player. I told them she isn’t going to back down. We had to stay poised on defense, not reach or pick up unnecessary fouls to get the job done. We also had to be more aggressive on offense. We weren’t very aggressive in the first half. We didn’t start out the way I wanted to. We definitely kicked that into gear in the second half.”
Jacobs capped off her big night with six points in the fourth quarter. Monsanto and Bowers each chipped in five points, and Camillea Gore added two as Heathwood Hall set the final score at 66-45.
“It’s a big win. We love the Hammond game. It’s a deep rivalry,” Zimmerman said. “We know that we have to prepare for each game as if it’s our last. Our team has to always come in ready to fight, knowing that every team is going to step up wanting to get that win. We have to make sure to step up to that challenge.”
Heathwood Hall: Lauren Jacobs 37, Sabreya Monsanto 13, Virginia Bowers 7, Abby Mullins 5, Amariea Spriggs 2, and Camillea Gore 2.
Hammond: Samira Khalil 25, Kayce Hyman 7, Anna Katherine Adams 6, Sophie Stephens 3, Hailey Inman 2, and Rebecca Waites 2.
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