GRAVETTE -- Farmington used a fast start and balanced scoring to stay undefeated in the 4A-1 Conference.
Farmington grabbed a 13-1 lead and rolled to a 74-53 victory over Gravette on Tuesday at the Lions' Den. Megan Hernandez scored 15 points to lead four players in double figures for the Lady Cardinals.
Farmington (21-1, 6-0) already led by 12 points when Gravette scored its first basket on a bank shot in the lane by Keeley Elsea with 3 minutes, 15 seconds left in the first quarter. Carson Dillard added 13 points for Farmington. Jenna Lawrence followed with 12 and Reese Shirey had 10.
"One of the beautiful things about our basketball team is our versatility and ability to score in a lot of difference spots," Farmington coach Brad Johnson said. "Our kids, they do a great job of finding the open man and in continuing to find the hot hand."
Gravette went 2-0 last week and won 53-47 at Prairie Grove on Friday after trailing by 12 points in the second half. But Gravette's opportunity at pulling an upset Tuesday was dealt a blow even before the game started when three players, including two starters, were forced to miss the game because of Covid-19 contact tracing. Sophomore guard Brynn Romine, who had to sit out Tuesday, played a major role in the comeback win at Prairie Grove when she scored 12 points and made 6 of 7 free throws in the fourth quarter.
Despite the setback, the Lady Lions (12-8, 3-2) competed to the end, which drew praise from their coach and applause from Gravette fans.
"That group right there fought, scratched and clawed against a team that is No. 1 in the state for a reason," Gravette coach Will Pittman said. "We kept punching, kept punching, and that's something this group always does. This is a special group of young ladies to be around. I love coming to practice every day."
Alexa Parker scored 18 points and Reese Hamilton 15 points for the Lady Lions. Parker made five 3-pointers and Hamilton four 3-pointers.
Farmington's players took turns scoring while building a 23-10 lead after one quarter. Lawrence took over in the second quarter and scored seven consecutive points to increase the Farmington lead to 30-13.