By David Shaw
sports@salisburypost.com
The following is not a misprint:
“We needed that loss,” Salisbury girls coach Andrew Mitchell said.
That was Mitchell explaining his team’s 52-46 setback against defending state champion East Davidson on Friday.
“It forced us to take a look at how we were doing things offensively,” Mitchell said. “We would make one pass and take a quick shot. We needed to slow things down.”
Someone must have sent the Hornets a get-well-soon card over the weekend. They bounced back with a 77-14 dismantling of West Davidson on Tuesday and moved into second place in the CCC standings.
“That last game hurt because we have standards around here,” said forward De’Rya Wylie, who tossed in a season-best 18 points. “It was a good eye-opener. We don’t feel like we can just roll through it. We know we have to stay focused.”
Salisbury (12-1, 3-1) was so focused last night it opened a 32-0 second-quarter lead.
The Hornets played with child-like enthusiasm, forcing 12 turnovers in the opening period and turning the game into a well-attended layup drill.
“I was afraid of this,” West Davidson coach David Klinkoski said after his team managed only six field goals. “Every time they took a shot, it seemed like it was a layup. And every steal they made turned into another layup.”
Salisbury sophomore Ashia Holmes made her second start of the season and netted six of her career-best 12 points in the first quarter.
Included was an uncontested layup that made it 28-0 less than six minutes into the game.
“It was fast-paced execution,” Holmes said. “We were just doing what the coach asked us to do ó run the floor, make baskets and play defense.”
The first points for West Davidson (6-5, 2-1) came on Meghan Church’s basket with 6:31 remaining in the first half.
Four Salisbury players ó Wylie, Bubbles Phifer (13 points), Holmes and Kia Rice (11) ó scored in double figures.
“Losing is not fun,” Phifer said. “All it did was get us ready for the next game. It wasn’t good, but we now realize we can be beat. We’d been winning games by 30 points or more and didn’t see it coming.”
west davidson (14) ó Owens 7, Church 2, Cox 2, Elmore 2, Sarver 1.salisbury (77) ó Wylie 18, B.Phifer 13, As.Holmes 12, Rice 11, N.Phifer 8, Heilig 8, Shipp 6, Ay.Holmes 1, Young, Miller, Clinding.
W. Davidson 0 6 5 3 ó 14
Salisbury 30 8 25 14 ó 77