MANSFIELD — Nakyra Petty couldn’t miss and Madison couldn’t convert.
A junior guard, Petty scored a career-high 21 points and Mansfield Senior limited the Rams to two fourth-quarter points in a 57-39 Ohio Cardinal Conference win Thursday at Pete Henry Gym.
The Tygers (4-15, 2-9) trailed 37-35 after Madison’s Leah Boggs scored on a layup with 2:15 remaining in the third quarter. A Petty layup with 2:02 to play in the period knotted the score at 37-37, igniting a 22-2 run over the final 10 minutes. Madison scored its only points of the fourth quarter on a short jumper by reserve Jenna Wigton with nine seconds left in the game.
“(Petty) shoots the ball well when she takes her time and gets her feet set,” Mansfield Senior coach Todd Krill said. “Then defensively, we tried to mix things up with our presses and we tried to plug up the middle because Madison had a height advantage.
“With a young team, you don’t always know how they are going to react to different situations. Our girls responded well tonight.”
The 5-foot-4 Petty did most of her damage in the first half, scoring 15 points and knocking down three 3-pointers. Senior High led 14-10 after the first quarter, before Madison (8-12, 3-9) pulled even at 26-26 at the half.
“We had three girls with the flu and we just couldn’t find the right combinations,” Madison coach Brian Davis said. “I don’t think our intensity level was ever where we needed it to be.
“We went through a stretch there where shots just weren’t falling and it led to some run-outs for Mansfield Senior. I think we kind of wore down.”
Jordan Thompson backed Petty with 13 points, all in the second half. Talayzha Catchings added 10, while JayJayhe Feagin added nine points despite battling foul trouble all evening.
“Briana Perry and Destiny Rutter both stepped in there and really helped us,” Krill said. “Then Kiarra Mathews, who is five-foot-nothing, was out there working hard. Her hustle makes up for her height.”
Leah Boggs led Madison with 15 points. The athletic sophomore had nine points in the third quarter. Rebecca Phelps scored nine of her 11 points in the first half.
“Leah plays hard and she’s been very consistent for us,” Davis said. “We know what we are going to get from her.
“With some girls being sick, we needed some other people to step up. We struggled to match their intensity.”
