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Pickering, La. —
The Pickering Lady Red Devils aren't your typical No. 23 seed. But in the same sense, the Mansfield Lady Wolverines aren't your run of the mill No. 26 seed.
Both Pickering (21-8) and Mansfield (14-16) proved to be much better than their postseason seeding as both went on the road in the Class 2A playoffs on Thursday and knocked off a higher-ranked team.
The Lady Red Devils hammered 10th-ranked Evangel, 71-55, while Mansfield stunned No. 7 Mamou, 65-60.
The Lady Wolverines will make the trip from DeSoto Parish to Pickering at 7 p.m. Monday for a second-round matchup against the Lady Red Devils.
"Mansfield plays a lot like we do. They are really scrappy," Pickering head coach Vickie Sketoe said. "We are going to have to rebound the ball, handle their pressure and hit our shots if we want to win."
Admission to the game is $6 per person
Sketoe is no stranger to Mansfield, having coached against them during her days as the head coach at Lakeview High School. She is also no stranger to head coach Kendra Neal Cunningham, a former all-state athlete at Pelican and standout at Louisiana Tech.
"We are going to have to come ready to play because I know they will be ready to go," Sketoe said. "They have a couple of guards who can shoot from the outside and they have a good, left-handed player in the post. We have to get after it and play well to win."
The Lady Red Devils will likely start the quintet of senior Nastashia Webber, junior Katherine Brinkley, Sami Thomas, Drucilla Rudolph and Katie Haymon, with Aaliyah Sheppard providing some solid play off the bench.
One advantage for the Lady Red Devils will be the home atmosphere at Pickering. Sketoe pointed out that the fans who traveled to Evangel for the playoffs gave her team an added boost of adrenaline to compete.
"Our fans came in with their faces painted and were cheering from the start," Sketoe said. "It gave us a big boost and it really helped our girls. Our fans outnumbered their fans. It was incredible."
The winner of this game will face either Menard or St. Thomas Aquinas in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
The 14th-ranked Hicks Lady Pirates (9-27) take to the road on Monday for a 6 p.m. contest against third-ranked Starks in the second round of the Class C playoffs.
The Lady Panthers received a first-round bye in the playoffs and haven't played since whipping Hackberry on Feb. 9.
Starks is one of the favorites for the Class C title, being led by veteran head coach Angela Willis and all-state candidate Kaci Willis, her daughter.
Kaci Willis is a threat from the inside, while fellow starters Baleigh Bussell, Gabby Miller, Ciara Bussell and Leanna Ashworth are very capable players as well.
Miller and Ciara Bussell are solid outside shooters, while Baleigh Bussell is a fantastic ball handler and shooter despite her diminutive stature.
Hicks will try to counter with the lineup of Amber Sumler, Chela Lack, Lauren Wellman, Karissa Boswell and Paige Riggleman, with a little help off the bench from Rachel Smith and Chalayne Hughes.
The winner of the game would face either Atlanta or Athens in the state quarterfinals.
The final team involved in a playoff game is Faith Training Christian Academy, who will host CHEF-Baton Rouge at East Leesville Baptist Church at 6 p.m. Monday in the Louisiana Christian School Athletic Association quarterfinals.
The Lady Patriots have a record of 17-1 this season and are the No. 1 seed in the West Bracket of the tournament.
Veteran head coach Vic Ortiz usually starts the quintet of Kylee Williams, Sara Reese, Emily Reese, Feliciana Groves and Kirstyn Jeane.
With a win, FTCA would advance to the state semifinals later this week in Lafayette.
The Pickering Lady Red Devils aren't your typical No. 23 seed. But in the same sense, the Mansfield Lady Wolverines aren't your run of the mill No. 26 seed.
Both Pickering (21-8) and Mansfield (14-16) proved to be much better than their postseason seeding as both went on the road in the Class 2A playoffs on Thursday and knocked off a higher-ranked team.
The Lady Red Devils hammered 10th-ranked Evangel, 71-55, while Mansfield stunned No. 7 Mamou, 65-60.
The Lady Wolverines will make the trip from DeSoto Parish to Pickering at 7 p.m. Monday for a second-round matchup against the Lady Red Devils.
"Mansfield plays a lot like we do. They are really scrappy," Pickering head coach Vickie Sketoe said. "We are going to have to rebound the ball, handle their pressure and hit our shots if we want to win."
Admission to the game is $6 per person
Sketoe is no stranger to Mansfield, having coached against them during her days as the head coach at Lakeview High School. She is also no stranger to head coach Kendra Neal Cunningham, a former all-state athlete at Pelican and standout at Louisiana Tech.
"We are going to have to come ready to play because I know they will be ready to go," Sketoe said. "They have a couple of guards who can shoot from the outside and they have a good, left-handed player in the post. We have to get after it and play well to win."
The Lady Red Devils will likely start the quintet of senior Nastashia Webber, junior Katherine Brinkley, Sami Thomas, Drucilla Rudolph and Katie Haymon, with Aaliyah Sheppard providing some solid play off the bench.
One advantage for the Lady Red Devils will be the home atmosphere at Pickering. Sketoe pointed out that the fans who traveled to Evangel for the playoffs gave her team an added boost of adrenaline to compete.
"Our fans came in with their faces painted and were cheering from the start," Sketoe said. "It gave us a big boost and it really helped our girls. Our fans outnumbered their fans. It was incredible."
The winner of this game will face either Menard or St. Thomas Aquinas in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
The 14th-ranked Hicks Lady Pirates (9-27) take to the road on Monday for a 6 p.m. contest against third-ranked Starks in the second round of the Class C playoffs.
The Lady Panthers received a first-round bye in the playoffs and haven't played since whipping Hackberry on Feb. 9.
Starks is one of the favorites for the Class C title, being led by veteran head coach Angela Willis and all-state candidate Kaci Willis, her daughter.
Kaci Willis is a threat from the inside, while fellow starters Baleigh Bussell, Gabby Miller, Ciara Bussell and Leanna Ashworth are very capable players as well.
Miller and Ciara Bussell are solid outside shooters, while Baleigh Bussell is a fantastic ball handler and shooter despite her diminutive stature.
Hicks will try to counter with the lineup of Amber Sumler, Chela Lack, Lauren Wellman, Karissa Boswell and Paige Riggleman, with a little help off the bench from Rachel Smith and Chalayne Hughes.
The winner of the game would face either Atlanta or Athens in the state quarterfinals.
The final team involved in a playoff game is Faith Training Christian Academy, who will host CHEF-Baton Rouge at East Leesville Baptist Church at 6 p.m. Monday in the Louisiana Christian School Athletic Association quarterfinals.
The Lady Patriots have a record of 17-1 this season and are the No. 1 seed in the West Bracket of the tournament.
Veteran head coach Vic Ortiz usually starts the quintet of Kylee Williams, Sara Reese, Emily Reese, Feliciana Groves and Kirstyn Jeane.
With a win, FTCA would advance to the state semifinals later this week in Lafayette.
