Lincoln County High basketball teams compete in Hawthorne

Lincoln County High School Lynx boys and girls basketball teams traveled to Hawthorne last weekend for the Serpent Classic. The boys played in five games over the weekend, and finished two for three in the end. The girls also played five games, winning one and losing four.

Girls coach Lori Cheeney said, ?I was very pleased with the competition at the tournament. It was tough physically playing that many games in three days.?

Against Division IV Pyramid Lake Lakers, the ladies lost 55-53. Against the Division III Mineral County Serpents, the Lynx came out on top, winning 40-24. Their next three matches were close but unsuccessful as they played the Division III schools White Pine Bobcats, losing 33-31, Battle Mountain Longhorns, losing 40-38, and Pershing County Mustangs, losing 35-25.

The ladies were 60 percent from the free throw line, but only 30 percent from the field on shooting, and accumulated a number of turnovers.

?I was very pleased with the amount of rebounds we were getting,? Cheeney said.

Cheeney said the tournament helped to, ?pinpoint exactly where our weaknesses are so that we can get to work on improving them.?

Overall, Cheeney said, ?We are all very excited for a successful season with a great group of hard working girls who are committed to each other and the program.?

Head Athletics Director and boys basketball coach Matt Cameron said, as a coach, ?I?m happy, the team exceeded my expectations.?

The first game was against the Yerington Lions last Thursday night, now playing their second year as a Division III school. The Lynx were defeated, 64 to 39. ?We struggled from the free throw line,? Cameron said, going only six for 27 in the game. The Lynx were trailing only 11 points at half time, but could not keep up with the momentum of Yerington, scoring only 19 points in the second half versus the Lions 33.

Against the Division IV Pyramid Lake Friday morning, however, Lincoln County overcame the Lakers, finishing the game 58 to 41.

The Lynx also faced Pershing County Mustangs Friday, in a close game, that saw the Lynx defeated by the Division III Pershing County, 55 to 50. Improving their free throw percentage for the game, the Lynx went 10 for 19 free throws.

In the game against North Valleys Panthers Saturday afternoon, the Division I school dominated the Lynx, 89 to 57. ?We did well the first half,? Cameron said, as the Lynx only trailed 11 points at half time. But, ?we were tired the second half,? he said. During the second half, Cameron played subs in and out of rotation, to give them experience he said.

Against Smith Valley, Lynx again saw victory, overcoming the Bulldogs 64 to 37.

With only two returning seniors this year, the young and small Lynx have shown big improvement in their defense. ?We?re a small, young group, but we do a good job crashing the boards,? Cameron said, complementing his team on their rebounds.

Offensively, he said, ?We?re unselfish with the ball, worked really well as a team.?

Standing out early in the season is sophomore guard McClain O?Connor, who is averaging about 18 points per game, and currently holds the highest free throws for his team this season.

Also performing well was Derek Shumway, junior forward. Shumway earned 24 points against Pyramid Lake, and averages 10 to 12 points per game.

The Lynx faced off with Enterprise Tuesday night, a tough team, Cameron reported, that is returning the whole team from last year, in their next non league preseason game.