GREENWOOD – Lander freshman guard
Quadaija Langley scored 19 points but the Bearcats fell short against Young Harris 71-60 in a Peach Belt Conference game Wednesday night at Horne Arena.
Lander fell to 7-19 overall, 4-13 in the Peach Belt.
It was the final home game for the Bearcats this season as they finish the 2022-23 campaign at Flagler in St. Augustine, Fla., on Saturday afternoon.
The Mountain Lions improved to 12-13, 8-9.
Langley hit seven of 12 shots from the floor, with all seven makes in the second half when she scored 15 of her 19 points. Langley also led the Bearcats with four steals.
Jakiyah Parker contributed 12 points, making three 3-pointers for Lander.
Tanyia Gordon added nine points and three assists for the Bearcats while
Tyasia Freeman paced Lander with seven rebounds.
Mackenzie Johnson led Young Harris with a double-double, scoring 22 points and grabbing 16 rebounds while blocking four shots. She is averaging a double-double this season.
Dustie Obah added 13 points for the Mountain Lions while Trinity Edwards scored 12.
Young Harris out-rebounded the Bearcats 44-24, grabbing 16 offensive boards.
Parker and
Cory Santoro hit 3-pointers, Freeman made a put-back, and
Kayla Sanders converted a layup off a nice pass from Santoro as Lander fought to a 13-all tie after one quarter.
Obah made three 3-pointers in the second period as Young Harris extended its lead to 32-23 at halftime. Parker and Santoro each made a 3-pointer, but the Bearcats made only three of 17 shots in the quarter.
The Mountain Lions increased their advantage to 40-25 early in the second half. Sanders cut to the basket for a layup while Langley added a driving layup as Lander pulled within 40-29 with 6:29 left in the third period.
Young Harris closed the third quarter with a 21-8 run, upping its advantage to 61-37 going into the final period. Johnson scored nine of those points while Lilly Griffith and Carly Winters added five apiece.
Parker's third trey of the game cut the Bearcat deficit to 63-45 with 7:12 left.
Johnson's layup increased the Mountain Lion lead to 71-49 with 3:18 to go.
Lander closed the game with an 11-0 run. Gordon made a layup and added a tip-in, Langley swished a 3-pointer from the left corner and added a breakaway layup, and
Jasmine Grant scored inside off a pass from
Destiny Middleton.
