Wynter Rogers did a little bit of everything for Little Rock Christian on Thursday night -- even when wasn't part of the action on the court.
The senior forward scored seven points over the final two minutes of the fourth quarter to help the her team storm back from an 11-point, third-quarter deficit and beat Conway 68-66 in a nonconference showdown at Warrior Arena in Little Rock.
"You're talking about two good teams that are going to have a chance to win their classifications," Little Rock Christian Coach Ronald Rogers said. "What I liked about our team was that early on, it was very rocky. We had turnovers, missed chippies and just didn't have a good flow. But we showed some mental toughness, and that's big for such a young team.
"I really thought that was the key for us down the stretch."
Wynter Rogers ultimately was the driving force behind Little Rock Christian (2-0), which got off to a slow start and trailed 33-23 at halftime before rallying in the third quarter. The West Virginia signee finished with 30 points, 9 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 assists and 2 blocks while playing all five positions. About the only thing she wasn't asked to do for the Lady Warriors was sweep the floor, and she even did that during a fourth-quarter break.
Rogers did get some help from her teammates, and that made a huge difference in the second half. Sophomore guard Mia Smith scored 12 points, junior guard Sheridan Cross added 10, and junior forward Ashley Hopper had 8 points, 3 rebounds and 3 steals.
Sophomore guard Chloe Chardy scored 23 points for Conway (0-1), which never trailed in the first half and dominated the boards. However, a rash of mistakes over the final two quarters hurt the Lady Wampus Cats.
Conway outrebounded Little Rock Christian 38-21 for the game but turned the ball over 24 times, including 14 in the second half. Junior guard Jaiden Thomas had 14 points for Conway, while sophomore center Savannah Scott chipped in with nine. Senior forward Haylee Malcum only had five points but pulled down 11 rebounds.
The Lady Wampus Cats held a 36-35 lead with 6:12 left in the third quarter after a short basket from Thomas, but a three-point play from Rogers started a 16-4 run for the Lady Warriors.
A three-pointer from Cross eventually gave Little Rock Christian a 41-40 advantage at the 2:50 mark of the quarter before back-to-back 21-footers from Clardy and Thomas allowed the Lady Wampus Cats to sprint back in front. Conway took a slim 50-48 cushion into the fourth quarter, but a baseline jumper from Hopper ignited a 10-3 rally that gave Little Rock Christian the lead.
Conway managed to pull within 62-61 after a pair of free throws from Scott with 49 seconds left in the game, but another three-point play from Rogers moments later essentially ended the Lady Wampus Cats' comeback. Rogers tacked on two free throws with 27 seconds remaining before fouling out.
"She led by example," Ronald Rogers said, referencing his daughter's big night. "It was a rocky start for her, but she's just so versatile. She's hitting threes, driving the ball, pulling up, getting rebounds. She just does so many things.
"But then you had Mia step up, Sheridan step up, Ashley Hopper and Ashton Elley. ... It was just a really good team win."