The Lady Tigers of A.I. are, today, a far cry from the dominant juggernaut teams of the late nineties.  Back then, the News Journal (and many other places) perennially picked A.I. to win the State.  And no wonder.  With hall of fame talent like Tracey Howell, Monica Peterson, Latanya Shazier and Beth Belanger, the Greenville Gang was loaded.  And yet, somehow, they never quite got there.  Well, today's Tigers -- though not pretending that they can compare to the teams of yesteryear -- are still an interesting bunch.  They are led by the amazing talents of big girl, Aimee Bouie.  Bouie led all scorers with 21 points on the day.  That was 57% of the A.I. total.  And therein lies the problem.  She's doing all she can, but the supporting cast is having a hard time keeping up.  This is especially apparent in the Lady Tiger guard play.  Maybe it's lack of experience.  But on this day, Penn had the deeper, more complete attack.

For the Lady Colonials, things start with senior, Joy Downs (20 points, pictured at left).  But they don't end there.  There's some really nice backcourt play from Mikalia Frazier (6 points), Tjuana Dumpson and Erica Mundy (4 points each).  Brianna Woods can be used in a number of places, and is not afraid of contact (5 points/3 of 4 from the line).  And, unlike A.I., Penn has provided Joy Downs with help in the paint.  Nina Tambe is a real presence underneath, and can score big points in her own right (12 on the game).

The game itself started out a little creaky as both teams had trouble finding the basket -- there were just 11 points, total, scored in the first 8 minutes.  Both squads found their legs (and the hoop) in the second period, with A.I. scoring 17 and Penn just behind with 14.  The teams went into the break with the Colonials up, 23 - 19. 

In the third, the Lady Tigers shaved a point off the Penn lead, taking affairs into the fourth quarter just three points behind. 

In the final period, though, Penn really found themselves and played the best team ball of the afternoon.  In those 8 minutes, the Basin Road Brawlers hit up the scoreboard for 21 points, with only 4 of those from Downs.  Frazier hit 2 nice-looking threes, and Tambe joined the party by launching a three of her own, to go with two other regular baskets in the quarter.

In the end, that fourth quarter is what did in A.I. DuPont.  That, and the deeper William Penn roster. 

Random Notes

A.I.'s Leigh Waters looks over her options on the inbound pass.

Penn's Tjuana Dumpson gets up in the grille of the Tiger ball carrier.

Joy Downs looking to pass while Shirelle Kerns (#30) signals that she's open underneath.