Saratoga declaws North Park

Despite the best attempts of Mother Nature, the Saratoga Lady Panthers were able to hit the road as they ventured across the border and were hosted by the North Park Lady Wildcats on January 17. While in Walden, the Lady Panthers were able to return home with another victory under their belt.

“I was pleased with our defensive effort this game and we really stepped that up in the second half of the game,” said Heather Bartlett, head coach of the Lady Panthers. “We played especially well during the second half.”

Bartlett added that she was pleased with Saratoga’s free throw percentage. The Lady Panthers, as a team, saw 74 percent success from the free throw line. 

“Our shooting percentage from the floor and the 3-point line wasn’t great, but overall it was a really good game for us,” Bartlett said.

Freshman Whitney Bennett saw double-double as she led Saratoga with 20 points and 13 rebounds. W. Bennett also had 5 steals and 5 assists. Senior Taylor Bennett scored 13 points and had 5 rebounds.

“Tasia Daley and Savannah Wells lead our defensive effort, playing great defense throughout the entire game,” said Bartlett.

Wells scored 7 points and had 3 rebounds while Daley scored 5 points and had 8 rebounds and 3 steals. Senior Makiya Johnson scored 3 points against the Lady Wildcats and had 4 rebounds while Jenna Dew also scored 3 points and had 5 rebounds and 2 steals. Shelby Knotwell contributed for a team win with 2 points.

The final score was 53-44.

Following the win against North Park, the Lady Panthers are sitting at the top of the 1A Southwest Conference at 5-6 for the season and 1-0 in conference play. Saratoga will host two conference rivals this weekend beginning with the Cokeville Lady Panthers (9-0, 0-0) on Friday and the Farson-Eden Lady Pronghorns (4-9, 0-1) on Saturday.

Tip-off against Cokeville will begin at 4 p.m. on January 24 and Saratoga will face the Lady Pronghorns beginning at noon on January 25 at Saratoga Middle High School.