LADY TIGERS' SHOTS ELUDE TARGET IN LOSS

Nothing's worse than showing up for a Shootout with sights out of alignment.

The Cape Central Lady Tigers discovered that fact Saturday.

Cape Central shot just 29 percent from the field and 40 percent from the foul line as the more-athletic Rosary Lady Rebels (9-5) were able to stave off the Lady Tigers 55-42 in the first game of the Fourth Annual Tiger Shootout.

It's not that the Lady Tigers (9-3) were taking bad shots. They just couldn't put the ball in the basket.

"Our biggest problem was our shooting," Tigers coach Darrick Smith said. "A lot of times it was shots that need to go and usually do go. You're talking 2- and 4-footers and free throws. We just didn't shoot well at all."

The poor shooting performance wasted an otherwise fine outing for Central. The Lady Tigers turned the ball over just five times for the entire game, while forcing Rosary -- the defending Class 3A champions -- into 18 turnovers.

Senior point guard Kim Aslinger led the Lady Tigers with 11 points.

Rosary, meanwhile, shot 53 percent (19-for-35) from the field and had three players score in double figures.

Angie Stith, a flashy yet productive forward who has signed to play for St. John's University, scored 18 points to lead Rosary.

Junior center Becky Heidotton followed with 15 points.

And soon-to-be Otahkian Lori Chase, a 6-foot forward, finished with 14 points.

"At different times they all took over for a few minutes," Rosary coach Ron Sanford said. "Lori is one of those kids when she's on the other team you don't like her a whole lot but when she's on your team, you love her. She's tough and she plays tough. I think that when she comes down here, people are going to like the way she plays."

The final score wasn't indicitave of the game's competitiveness.

The Lady Tigers trailed by as few as three points, 31-28, with 2:20 left in the third quarter. Central used an effective full-court press that forced five turnovers late in the third quarter, but the Lady Tigers missed their last seven shots of the period and entered the final eight minutes of play down 37-28.

"Coming down here was a tough game," Sanford said. "Cape made about two or three runs. I think our experience showed. I've got some kids who have been through the wars. I've got some kids who have played in two state championship games."

Central starts three sophomores and has just two seniors on their 11-person roster.

Twice in the fourth quarter, the Lady Tigers cut Rosary's cushion to eight points, but the Lady Rebels were able to sustain a comfortable lead down the stretch by making eight of 12 free throws in the final 1:14.

Central didn't help its own cause by making only six of 15 foul shots.

Rosary got off to a quick start, taking a 12-8 lead after the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Lady Rebels -- after watching Central cut their lead to 13-12 went on an 8-0 run.

"I thought we played pretty hard in the second half," Smith said. "In the first half we didn't play very well."