Davis paces Dresden with 24 points in win

DRESDEN - Trailing by six heading into the second quarter, Dresden's Mary Grace Davis said that she didn't feel like she played well defensively for her team.

But Davis turned it on in the next three quarters offensively and defensively to lead the No.4-ranked Lady Lions to a 53-36 victory over No. 3-ranked Gleason in a District 13-A contest on Tuesday.

"I don't feel I played well in the first quarter," Davis said. "I needed to do a better job of playing defense by getting in front of the player.

"The team picked it up after the first quarter and played as a team instead of as individuals."

Davis scored a game-high 24 points to lead Dresden (15-3, 7-0). Millie Bryant added 12.

Gleason (18-4, 6-2) scored at will in the first quarter, including the final six points of the quarter for the lead.

"I told them that we were OK," Dresden coach Jonathan West said. "We just couldn't lose our composure. They got us playing the way they wanted. They wanted to play fast, but in the second quarter, we started slowing it down. We wanted to play to our strengths, which are size and strength. We got it down to a half-court game instead of a track meet."

But the Lady Bulldogs went cold after that point and struggled to score. They had seven field goals in the final three quarters.

Part of that was the Dresden defense.

"We played better defensively, but we are still having lapses," West said. "We kept the ball out of the middle of the lane because early on, they were getting in there and kicking it out to an open shooter. We challenged their shots and got defensive rebounds."

But it was Davis, who scored 10 points in the second quarter  that helped the Lady Lions take a six-point lead at halftime (28-22).

Getting back in the game was Dresden's only run as Gleason kept the game close with its defense. The Lady Bulldogs had some opportunities to score and get back in the game, but they couldn't hit the shots when they they needed to.

With 3:35 left in the fourth quarter, Dresden's lead was nine points. But the Lady Lions closed out the game on a 14-6 run.

"I think this win brought this team closer together," Davis said. "It was important to show us what we had to do in games like this "

Kelsey Borneman and Lillian Nichols led Gleason with nine points each.

The win gives Dresden a two-game lead over Gleason in the District 13-A standings, but the Lady Lions are still one game over Huntingdon, a team they haven't played yet this season.

"This was a big game, but they were not giving away any trophies at the end, so this was not the end all," West said. "What matters comes in a month during tournament play."

Michael Odom, 425-9754