On Friday night, the Oak Hill Golden Eagles, ranked No. 2 in the 2a preseason polls, got off to a tremendous start with a 61-28 win over the Peru Bengal Tigers in the season opener.
The Golden Eagles took control early, as they outscored the Tigers 17-6 in the first quarter and cruised from there.
Suffocating defensive pressure, one of the biggest strengths for this team last year, was on full display against the Tigers, as the Golden Eagles capitalized on Peru’s mistakes.
“I think our defensive pressure helped us to force some turnovers and turn some defense into offense,” head coach Todd Law said after the game. “We got a lot of [easy] layups, [points] off steals, [and] our fast break was pretty solid. I think those were two of the main contributing factors for us. It was definitely not our best performance, but we were able to come out, get some of the jitters out, and get the kids on the floor and acclimated back to playing.”
Taylor Westgate led the Golden Eagles with 19 points on nine-of-12 shooting to go along with six rebounds and six steals, and was a menace inside all game long.
“Taylor had a definite size advantage inside, and obviously, we took advantage of that,” Law said. “She did a nice job.”
Brittany McCorkle also played a strong game, finishing with 10 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
“I thought that Brittany had the best game of anyone last night,” Law said. “I thought she played a really good, solid game for us coming off the bench at the point spot.”
Jenessa Hasty finished with 10 points, five rebounds, and seven steals, while Kaela Robey had eight points in the victory.
While the Golden Eagles won big in their first game, Law hopes that his team can clean up some of their defensive mistakes heading into Tuesday’s matchup with Marion.
“We had some defensive breakdowns [against Peru,] and we are going to have to do a much better job if we are going to be successful on Tuesday.”
