The Sissies once trailed by six points but finally found its rhythm in the second half to take a 56-42 win at Vernon. They now face their last challenge of the season at home Tuesday against Hirschi and Friday at Decatur, two teams Bridgeport defeated in the first round of district by a combined eight points.
"We had a poor start to the game against Vernon with a lack of offensive execution," said BHS coach Eddie Fortenberry. "It's starting to sound like a broken record, but as we have done all year, we played much better in the second half and pulled away."
Bridgeport, now 26-1 for the year and 7-0 in district play, did very little to slow the only winless team in district in the first half. The Lions capitalized on Bridgeport miscues in the first quarter to jump in front 13-7.
Vernon continued with strong offense in the second quarter where it scored a game-high 17 points. The Sissies, who got baskets from Kaitlyn Waynen and Shannon Demmitt, finally found some consistency, but it was not enough to avoid its biggest half-time deficit of the year as they trailed 30-24.
Bridgeport, ranked No. 5 in the state, lived up to the hype in the second half. Led by five steals from Kim Bible, the locals held the Lions to just 12 points in the half.
The rally started early in the third quarter. Haley Meekins, Marissa Grooms and Waynen fueled a 17-10 run that gave the team a 41-40 lead.
The Sissies never lost their grip on the game. Demmitt help throttled Vernon in the fourth period where Bridgeport allowed just one basket and scored 15 of the 17 total points in the final eight minutes.
"We need to start games faster in the future or we are going to dig a hole we can't get out of," said Fortenberry.
Bible had a big night as she added six points and eight rebounds along with her team-leading five steals. Waynen scored the most for Bridgeport with 15 points, one more than Demmitt with 14. Meekins was next in scoring with 12 points, while Grooms had seven and Presley White had two.
