The Lady Wildcats picked up their third win in their last five games–beating Marshall County 40-33.
Tullahoma trailed after the first half 23-17, and it looked as if the Lady Wildcats were well on their way to losing to the Lady Tigers, to give them their tenth loss of the year. But Tullahoma stood tall during the deficit. They shrugged off the pressure and played at the same high level that has been present in all of their nine wins this season.
Senior forward Isabella Lidstrom led the rally in the second half for Tullahoma, scoring eight of her 11 points in the final two quarters.
“She took a refuse-to-lose mindset and really rallied our team to stay connected and positive. She was aggressive and active with and without the ball on offense which created some higher percentage shots. She did all that while being in foul trouble as well, which showed her leadership to continue to play hard but smart as well. She definitely was the difference maker and energizer we need to make the run to secure the victory,” head coach of the Lady Wildcats Jason Welch said regarding Lidstrom’s performance.
Her bruising style of play in the low post, and her constant hustle on defense has been something the Lady Wildcats have continuously been able to lean on through their recent stretch of games.
Tullahoma had a bad streak of performances in December. From Dec. 6 to the Dec. 28 they went winless—losing seven straight games. Their three wins over the last week and a half have been against tough opponents. Marshall County which the Lady Wildcats just won against has a positive win percentage and Moore County which they beat on Jan. 3 was just ranked as the third-best 1A team in Tennessee by the Tennessee Sports Writers Association.
This shows despite the long losing streak they found themselves in, they are still a talented group and can hang with the best of opponents.
“We have had better practices and preparation of late,” head coach Hibdon said regarding his team’s improved play.
“Our attention to detail, effort, and energy has increased lately in our practice and film sessions which has led us to being better prepared. We are still working on the consistency of that standard in our program.”
McLayne Bobo finished with double digits in the contest with 10 points, helping Lidstrom with the second half come from behind to win. The two Tullahoma upperclassmen combined for 15 second-half points, as the Lady Wildcats as a whole outscored Marshall Co. 23-10 in the half.
Momentum is building once again for the ‘Cats as they will look to keep the positive performances coming at home against Central Magnet on Jan. 17.