Western Brown freshman Aubrey Abbinante shoots a free throw during the Dec. 29 Brown County Holiday Tournament junior varsity championship game. Photo by Mason Watson
The Western Brown junior varsity girls are the 2023 Brown County Holiday Tournament JV champs. Photo provided
The Western Brown Lady Broncos junior varsity basketball team emerged as the champions of the Brown County Holiday Tournament for the first time since 2021. The Lady Broncos dominated the fast-paced game against the Eastern Lady Warriors on Dec. 29, clinching the victory in the 41st annual 2023 Brown County Holiday Tournament held at Georgetown Elementary School.
The Lady Broncos came out hot in the first half with a score of 25 points, over the Lady Warriors’ 13 total points. Western Brown freshman Rilynn Roush was the Lady Broncos’ offensive leader for the half, firing for 13 points.
The Lady Broncos struggled with the Lady Warriors’ defensive pressure in the third quarter, with Eastern only allowing seven points, with five coming from the charity stripe.
The Lady Warriors’ offensive threats slowed down toward the end and had several fouls called against them in the fourth quarter, allowing more points from the charity stripe. The Lady Broncos capitalized on the opportunity and came away with a 40-25 victory.
This is the twelfth BCHT victory for the Lady Broncos. Five of these victories have been under the current JV Western Brown Lady Broncos head coach Gina Lawrence.
“It was top-notch,” said Lawrence, “The girls deserve all the praise. It’s easy to coach girls who are showing up every day, working to get better and pushing each other in practice.”
Lawrence also congratulated the Eastern Lady Warriors on their second place BCHT finish and thanked the Georgetown administration, athletic department, and the janitorial staff for everything they did to make this year’s tournament a huge success.
Eastern sophomore Alyssa Johnston led the Lady Warriors in offense, firing for six points.
The Eastern Lady Warriors secured their spot in the championship by defeating the Georgetown Lady G-Men 29-25 in the first round of the tournament. With less than a minute remaining in the game, sophomore Alyssa Johnston fired a shot that put Eastern in the lead.
The Western Brown Lady Broncos defeated the Fayetteville Lady Rockets 30-22 in round one of the tournament on Dec. 28. Roush led the Lady Broncos with ten points for the match-up. Western Brown freshman Aubrey Schaffner contributed seven points to the small eight-point victory.
