Smithsburg pulls away from North

January 25, 2001

Smithsburg pulls away from North

By JACK HILL III / Staff Correspondent

When the Smithsburg girls basketball team was looking for some help on Wednesday night, it was a pair of 5-foot-2 guards that came to the rescue.

Senior LaNitra Higgins and junior Jenelle Stouffer sparked the Leopards during a hot spell in the third quarter to help them beat the North Hagerstown Hubs 60-40 in a Monocacy Valley Athletic League game.

Higgins scored eight points and Stouffer added six points on a pair of 3-pointers during the third quarter to help the Leopards outscore the Hubs 20-6 in the period to build a 45-29 advantage.

"We outletted the ball real good down the court and we were able to get some quick layups," Higgins said. "We had a bad second quarter. So, we knew that we had to come out and have a good third quarter. We played real good team ball."

"We got a little bit fired up in the locker room at halftime," Stouffer said. "We came out and played hard in the third quarter. We practice hard on our offense and it paid off. We executed very well during the third quarter. Everybody contributed in some way."

Sophomore Katy Powell finished with a season-high 22 points and seven rebounds, while Higgins contributed 12 points and four assists for Smithsburg (11-3, 8-2). Both Michelle Feiser and Stouffer added nine points and five steals for the Leopards. Feiser also grabbed 10 rebounds, while Melanie Whitt added eight rebounds for Smithsburg.

"LaNitra Higgins and Jenelle Stouffer came to the rescue for us in the third quarter," Smithsburg coach Jimmy Powell said. "Both of them hit clutch shots. Their defensive intensity really spurred us to the victory. Michelle Feiser rebounded exceptionally well tonight."

Ashley Mason grabbed 13 rebounds for North Hagerstown (3-7, 2-7). Amanda McGhee scored 15 points and Autumn Parson added 12 points for the Hubs.