Martin’s Mill Rolls to District Sweep of Rival LaPoynor

MARTIN'S MILL -- In a matchup of top 10 teams, the Martin's Mill Lady Mustangs smothered the LaPoynor Lady Flyers, 69-24, in a District 17-A Division I battle at O'Neal Weaver Gymnasium on Friday.

Martin's Mill (19-2, 2-0), ranked No. 1 in Class A Division I by the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches, used a 21-0 second quarter run and led 44-12 at halftime against the No. 8 Lady Flyers.

Sophomore Cheyenne Brown was unstoppable. The 6-0 post poured in a game-high 34 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks and three assists. McNeese State signee Haily Jenkins added five points, 11 rebounds and four assists. Freshman Alyssa Pate chipped in with 10 points, while Meagan Weatherford notched 11 rebounds and Taylor Munns added five steals.

After a 20-8 first quarter lead, Martin's Mill started the 21-0 run when Cassidy McCoy got a steal, then dished to Brown for the layup. After Munns got a steal, she went coast-to-coast for the lay-in, and it was 28-8 Martin's Mill.

Then Brown heated up. She scored the next eight points as the Lady Mustangs separated from their district rival.

"We wanted to come out with a lot of intensity and speed," said Martin's Mill coach Doug Barncastle. "We had a game on Wednesday (loss to Liberty-Eylau) where we just didn't play very good. I actually gave them two days off from practice. I think this was a good statement game for us. LaPoynor has always been in our district, and we always come out ready to play with them and I think we did that tonight."

"We've always known she was going to be special," Barncastle said of Brown. "She likes to score around the bucket, has a good eye for rebounds off the rim and she works hard. I would like to see her be a little more aggressive on the offensive boards, but she does a great job for us."

LaPoynor (13-9, 1-3) opened the second-half on a 4-0 run thanks to a Kivi Eldridge 3-pointer to get the Lady Flyers within 38, 44-16. But Pate drained a triple, followed by a Munns assist to Brown on a inbounds play, making it 50-16 and Martin's Mill never looked back.

LaPoynor was led by Haley Torry, who had six points, five boards and three steals, and Eldridge, who chipped in six points and four rebounds.

District action continues as Martin's Mill travels to Big Sandy on Tuesday to take on the Lady Wildcats.

Freshman Davis Moore Helps Mustangs Rally Past LaPoynor

Down 13 with four mintues remaining in the first-half, Martin's Mill coach Trae Moore was looking for a spark.

He found it in freshman point guard Davis Moore.

Moore poured in a game-high 25 points to lead the Mustangs over district rival LaPoynor, 52-46.

Moore added four assists and three rebounds, while Hunter Conway had nine points (seven free throws), and three steals. Dylan Weatherford chipped in eight rebounds and a pair of blocks.

"In the first half, all of (LaPoynor) points came from run-outs and layups," Coach Moore said. "They weren't knocking down anything outside. We released a second guy to make sure they weren't getting anymore of that. We just had to stop their transition buckets."

When asked about his point guard Moore (and his son), the coach said, "Time spent in the gym. if you want to be good, you have to spend time in the gym. He's paid the hours in the gym to be there and we rely on him."

Free-throw shooting was a key to the game. Martin's Mill was 21 of 25, including 6 of its last 7. LaPoynor (14-4) was 8 of 17 and 3 of 8 in the last four minutes.

Tied at 34 all heading into the fourth, Conway opened with a steal and was fouled on his drive to the hoop for an and-1. After Cody Wilson drew his second charge of the night, Moore came back with a floater in the lane to push the Mustangs' margin to 39-34.

LaPoynor answered when James Jackson got an offensive rebound and putback. Then Mason Motal made a nice, strong move to the basket for two more, followed by another offensive board and layup for Jackson, and it was back to a one-point game, 46-45 Martin's Mill.

Martin's Mill's Moore and Logan Jenkins sank five of their last six free throws to seal the victory down the stretch.

LaPoynor's Jackson had a team-high 15 points, 18 rebounds and two blocks. Ashton Abendroth tallied 13 points (10 in the first half) and five rebounds.

Martin's Mill opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer by July Latimer, followed by Hunter Conway knocking down two free throws to start an 8-0 run. Jackson hit a runner in the lane for LaPoynor, making it 28-26. Then Wilson sank a trey off an assist from Moore to give Martin's Mill its first lead of the contest, 29-28.

Next, Martin's Mill's Weatherford turned in the hustle play of the game. He dove for a loose ball and passed it to Moore, who started a fast break. Moore pulled up at the top of the key and drained his third 3-pointer of the game, and it was 34-34 heading into the fourth.

With a little over four minutes left in the first half, Moore found Cody Wilson for a 3-pointer, then drained back-to-back triples to get Martin's Mill (12-8) within six at halftime, 25-19.

Martin's Mill is on the road Tuesday, continuing district play against Big Sandy.