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The Helena Huskies used a physical second half to their advantage to take home an area win against the Spain Park Jaguars on Friday, Jan. 17 at Helena High School. (For the Reporter/Jeremy Raines)

By TYLER RALEY | Staff Writer

HELENA – Backed by an aggressive and successful second half, the Helena Huskies ran away with another win in area play, this time over the Spain Park Jaguars.

Helena used its ability to get to the line as a recipe for success, which helped it defeat Spain Park 33-26 on Friday, Jan. 17 at Helena High School.

Not everything started in the Huskies’ favor however. Helena’s first possession lasted 45 seconds, and while it sustained the ball for a long period of time, it turned the ball over in the end, amounting to nothing.

Spain Park’s young star Ava Leonard later put things into motion on the scoreboard, hitting a 3-point shot, putting her squad up early in a time where it was evident that points would come at a premium.

That statement proved to be true, as no more points were scored until Lauren Smith hit a 3-pointer of her own for the Huskies, tying the game up with 4:50 left in the first.

The Jags then took control of the game for the rest of the quarter, consistently playing with emotion and forcing turnovers. Tori Flournoy and Teagan Huey each scored two points off turnovers from Helena, which helped to end the first quarter with an 8-3 advantage for Spain Park.

While the opening period seemed to tilt mightily towards the Jags, it was the Huskies that decided enough was enough, creating a new energy for the rest of the game.

Mallory Rhodes started the quarter off with a two-point bucket to cut the deficit to one possession. Isabel Heintz then joined the party, following that up with a 3-pointer to tie things up, swinging the momentum in a new direction.

Spain Park’s MC Hunter took the lead back with a 3-ball of her own, but Heintz did not let that last, tying things up yet again with another 3-pointer. 

Obtaining the lead was in sight, later to become reality as a free throw from Gracelyn Ambrose and two points from Amari Grant at the end of the quarter helped give Helena a 14-11 lead at halftime.

Huskies coach Lake Graham knew that his team was capable of this turnaround, as it is something they have been working on all season long.

“It’s something that we’ve been preaching literally from the beginning of this season was that one of our main goals was going to be mental toughness,” Graham said. “There’s been so much growth this season in that particular department and I think it is what has translated to us being able to actually win some of these closer games.”

As the third quarter started the Jags began to retrieve the momentum back. After a back-and-forth start, Hunter hit a 3-point shot, which was soon followed by Leonard forcing a steal and taking the ball inside to tie the game at 18.

Helena did not let that last though. Immediately following the tie, Grant came back down the court, eventually getting it inside and using her strength to put the ball through the net to take back the lead.

Heintz and Rhodes later combined for making five out of six free throws to end the quarter, which allowed the Huskies to take a huge 26-18 lead into the final eight minutes.

However, Spain Park did not let up easily, as Leonard went on a run of five straight points by herself to cut things down to a three-point game. 

In response, the Huskies let Heintz go to work, which proved beneficial. Heintz knocked down five free throws in the possessions that followed, extending things out to an eight-point advantage. 

This proved to be too much for the Jags to respond to, sending Helena home with a 33-26 win and a third area victory.

Graham was proud of the way Heintz and the rest of her teammates responded to any adversity in the second half, not letting Spain Park’s comeback attempts get to them down the stretch.

“I think that’s the first time (Heintz) played the whole game and she was huge. She finished the game for us,” Graham said. “I can’t say enough about our ability to finish there at the end and make the decisions we needed to and be tough in the moments that we needed to.”

Heintz finished the night leading all scorers with 15 points for the Huskies. Grant followed her up with eight after becoming very involved in the second half. In addition, Rhodes also made big plays and ended the game with five points.

As for the Jags, Leonard’s efforts gave her 13 points for the game, scoring half of the team’s points, while Hunter contributed six of her own.

Helena improves to 13-9 on the season with the win, while also bumping up to 3-2 in the area. Next up for Graham’s squad is a non-area date with the Hueytown Golden Gophers, which is set for Monday, Jan. 20 at 5:30 p.m. at Helena High School before the final area game at Pelham on Friday, Jan. 24.

Graham stated that he hopes that this victory gives his girls some momentum as they prepare to fight for a good area seed at the end of next week.

“Hopefully we’re able to use this win to kind of springboard us into a good week of preparation,” Graham said. “I think winning this game tonight the way that we did should do nothing but fuel our confidence, should do nothing but make us feel like there’s nothing that we can’t do, including going into an environment that’s really tough to win in and hopefully play our absolute best and give ourselves a chance.”

On the other side, Spain Park drops to 10-14 and 0-5 in the area. Its next task will also be a non-area showdown as it takes on the Montevallo Bulldogs on Monday, Jan. 20 at 1 p.m. at Montevallo High School.

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