LANDIS — South Rowan girls coach John Davis watched his team lose to visiting Salisbury 53-41 on Monday, but he never lost his sense of humor.
“Some of the passes we threw, we had fans taking cover,” Davis said. “We were bouncing balls off the walls.”
South (1-4) committed 30 turnovers in the first three quarters. Davis stopped counting after that. Some of those turnovers were forced by the Hornets. Others were caused by stage fright, inexperience or carelessness.
“Somewhere along the line we caught the turnover bug,” Davis said. “Now we’ve got to find some way to shake it.”
Salisbury (5-1) continues to shake things up in the county. This is a Salisbury team with little resemblance to last season’s 5-17 squad. Freshmen Bryanna Troutman (a talented 6-foot guard) and Tacorra Robinson, a blue-collar hustler, have transformed the Hornets into a combative team on the glass. Junior Tyzarea Alexander is getting steals and making 15-footers and looks like she’ll double her scoring average (8.0 ppg) from last year.
“We’ve got to do better this year,” Alexander said. “We’re making some things happen. We’re showing people what we can do.”
As recently as 2011, the Hornets won the 2A state championship. As recently as 2012, they won 25 games. They aren’t close to returning to that level yet, but, after some very tough times, they’re headed back up the mountain under third-year coach Lakai Brice.
“We played really well for three quarters tonight,” Brice said. “Even when Bryanna had to sit with foul trouble, we kept it going. We’re rolling a little bit.”
The game wasn’t as close as it sounds. South finished things off with a 16-0 run after Troutman hit a 3-pointer for a 28-point SHS lead early in the fourth quarter.
Salisbury’s defense clamped down on South’s high-scoring freshman Janiya Downs. Downs had an off-night at the foul line and scored 12 points. Her previous low was 23, but Salisbury showed her a box-and-one, a defense Downs is going to see frequently as her career unfolds.
“She’s a great player and I thought she kept her composure well for being a freshman and seeing box-and-one,” Brice said. “We packed it in and cut off the gaps when she drove. We made her kick the ball to their other shooters instead of finishing herself.”
Kamryn Stamey battled on the boards for nine points for South.
Helping out Alexander in the SHS scorebook were Maria Capito, who got 12 of her 13 points from the 3-point line, and Troutman, who scored 11.
Salisbury led 32-19 at halftime. It was basically over after the Hornets started hot in the second half.
“We came out with a lot of intensity in the third quarter,” Brice said.
Troutman made two quick shots, including a 3-pointer. When Capito stroked back-to-back 3s from deep on the left side, the lead snowballed to 25 points.
“Any time Capito can set her feet, she’s going to knock a 3-pointer down,” Davis said.
Niah Spratt was disruptive defensively for South, especially in the fourth quarter. The Raiders finished strong.
“We made Salisbury turn it over some too, but all we could do was make it respectable,” Davis said. “Our own turnovers had decided the game long before the fourth quarter. We’ve got to do a better job.”

Salisbury 53, South Rowan 41
SALISBURY (53) — Alexander 18, Capito 13, Troutman 11, T. Robinson 6, Phifer 2, Hightower 2, Glenn 1, H. Robinson, Howard.
SOUTH ROWAN (41) — Downs 12, Stamey 9, Corriher 5, Kimmer 4, Hardin 4, Morgan 2, Rollins 2, Carsen Carlton 2, Williams 1, Spratt, Samples, Chabala, Smith, Camden Corriher.

Salisbury 17 15 18 3 — 53
South Rowan 8 11 6 16 — 41