BRYANT -- Fort Smith Northside bent during much of Friday's game at Bryant, but Jersey Wolfenbarger wouldn't let the Lady Bears break.
The sophomore guard went 6 of 6 from the foul line over the final 51 seconds to cap her 21-point night as Northside held on for a 55-47 victory at Hornet Gymnasium in the 6A-Central Conference opener for both teams.
"We did just enough to survive and get a win," Northside Coach Rickey Smith said. "Got to give Bryant a lot of credit because they played well. They forced us into some turnovers in the second half, especially in that third quarter."
Sophomore forward Tracey Bershers had 14 points for Northside (13-0). Senior guard Sara Bershers finished with 5 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists before fouling out late in the fourth quarter.
Senior guard Kalia Walker drilled 5 three-pointers and finished with 19 points for Bryant (10-3), which trailed by as many as 17 points in the third quarter. Junior guard Tierra Trotter added 10 points, and senior forward Allison Steen chipped in with 7 rebounds, 6 blocks and 3 steals for the Lady Hornets.
Bryant led for most of the first quarter and held a 20-17 lead early in the second quarter until a bucket from Sara Bershers started a string of 14 consecutive points for Northside. A deep three-pointer from Trotter with 30 seconds left before halftime ended the Lady Bears' run, but Wolfenbarger answered with a 17-footer to give Northside a 33-23 lead at halftime.
The Lady Hornets missed their first seven shots of the second half and trailed 41-24 with 2:45 to go in the third quarter. A three-pointer from Walker started an 11-0 run that got Bryant going.
"We got a little bit of a lead there, kind of relaxed, and Bryant took advantage," Smith said.
A free throw from Bryant junior forward Ivory Russ cut Northside's lead to 44-42 with 2:28 left . Tracey Bershers and Walker traded three-pointers over the next two trips, but Wolfenbarger closed things out from the free-throw line for Northside.
The Lady Bears shot 16 of 36 while the Lady Hornets were 17-of-51 shooting. Both teams turned the ball over 17 times, but Bryant managed to outrebound Northside 28-23.
Sports on 01/05/2019