Faith Academy girls basketball beats Brentwood Christian, Keystone

CAPTION: Faith Academy of Marble Falls freshman guard Layla Terrell (10) and senior post Hadley Shipley (2) don’t allow the Round Rock Brentwood Christian ball handler to make a pass or dribble. Photo by Stennis Shotts

The Faith Academy of Marble Falls girls basketball team defeated San Antonio Keystone 60-49 Jan. 4 on the heels of defeating Round Rock Brentwood Christian 65-38 Dec. 30.

The victory against Keystone was in District 4-3A of the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools.

Head coach Harvey Vaughn took a hard look at what his Lady Flames do well and adjusted the scheme to enhance their abilities.

He decided to call for full-court presses with senior post Hadley Shipley at the front of the attack.

“We worked on that for two days,” he said.

They unveiled it against Brentwood Christian, which looked like it handled that attack OK at first. The Lady Bears took an 8-0 lead. But then Faith outscored them 14-3 and simply got on a roll.

“It started to click,” Vaughn said.

Shipley ended the contest with 33 points, 18 rebounds, 6 steals and an assist. Shipley made 15 of 23 field goals to finish the game with a 65 percent shooting percentage. Freshman Olivia Kraenzel added 17 points, 5 steals, 2 assists and a rebound.

Shipley’s natural speed, arm length and an instinct for the ball makes her the ideal choice to be at the front of the press, Vaughn said.

Feeling confident after the victory, the Lady Flames hit the road for a Saturday contest in San Antonio.

“It was a tough game,” the coach said. “The refs called ticky-tack fouls. We had nine fouls in the first quarter. I had two girls with three fouls and another one with 1.

By halftime, Faith trailed by eight points and Vaughn was concerned the fouls might mean not having enough players to finish the game. So he gave his players a hard truth.

“It’s not that we’re playing poorly,” he said. “You have to change. You have to keep your hands up. We have to start playing tougher defense.”

That started with the Lady Flames’ full-court defense that led to a 24-point turnaround. So instead of an eight-point deficit, Faith took a 16-point lead.

“It was a big win,” Vaughn said. “The girls regrouped and refocused. I was proud of them. They faced a team where they felt like the refs were against them. That has a tendency to let it affect the game. But they didn’t let it.”

Freshman guard Cuyleigh Zimmerman led with 17 points.

“Cuyleigh played well,” the coach said. “She guarded their best player. They got studs. She’s starting to figure it out.”

Faith Academy is taking a bye Tuesday, Jan. 7. The Lady Flames will travel to play at Georgetown Grace Academy Thursday, Jan. 9. Tipoff is tentatively scheduled for 6 p.m.

“They’re coming along,” Vaughn said. “I’ve seen a lot of growth. I think they’re enjoying playing the press more, and they’re having more success scoring.”

CAPTION: Faith Academy freshman guard Olivia Kraenzel makes two of her 17 points against Brentwood Christian. Photo by Stennis Shotts