Lady 'Cats Dig Deep, Pilfer Treasured Trophy Pirates Looking for in Own Backyard

The Madill Lady Wildcats employed tough defense and took advantage of the scoring opportunities that created to claim the first-ever Patriot Ford Byng Invitational Girls Basketball Championship Trophy with a 49-32 victory against host Byng Saturday night at Bill Kohler Fieldhouse. "It was a great three days of basketball," Coach Hugh Don Sweat said after leading his team to the title. "Congrats to the girls! They played well." Madill had built a 32-20 lead in the third quarter. Byng bounced back with six straight points to cut the margin to 32-26 with 40 seconds remaining in the quarter. That's precisely the moment Madill grabbed a steal and senior Blakelyn Self netted a layup. Kaylen Sweat connected with three points seconds later to put Madill ahead, 37-26, at the close of the third frame. That 5-0 run seemed to take the wind from the Lady Pirates' sail. The Lady 'Cats further distanced themselves from Byng in the concluding quarter by outscoring the hosts 12-8. Tournament most valuable player Kaylen Sweat had 20 points in the championship. All-tournament selection Haley Furr added eight. Mikah Hartsfield and Brenna Green played solid defense throughout the contest while chipping in 11 and eight points, respectively.  Box Score Madill        15        10        12        12            49 Byng          11        6         9           8            32 Madill (5-3): Sweat 20, Hartsfield 11, Furr 8, Green 6, Schulke 2, Self 2 Kaylen Sweat - MVP                       Haley Furr, All-Tournament