Lady Rams rout Dimmitt, take third place

DIMMITT, Texas — The young Portales Lady Rams squad has begun turning some heads.

Portales dominated from the get-go on Saturday and routed host Dimmitt 59-38 to take third-place in the Lady Bobcats' 12-team invitational.

Sophomore McKenzie Bucksath poured in a personal best 15 point, leading four players in double figures for the Lady Rams (3-1), who won twice on Thursday before losing to Littlefield 40-37 in Friday's semifinals.

"We got off to a really good start," PHS coach Clay Stout said. "We played extremely sharp in the first half.

"Overall I was really pleased (with the tournament). We showed a lot of progress every game."

Freshman Sheraya Cox added 12 points and junior Savannah Vincent scored 11. Sparked by a couple of 3-pointers from senior guard Hannah Cissell, Portales led 18-10 at the quarter and built the margin to 24 points by the end of the third period.

The Lady Rams had a solid tournament despite making three back-and-forth trips and playing at a variety of times.

"That's the biggest thing we were pleased with," Stout said. "I think we were a little disappoinged with the way we finished the game (against Littlefield)."

Freshman forward-post Kambrey Blakey, who scored 42 points in the first three games of the tournament, had a more quiet outing in this one with eight points, but the Lady Rams had plenty enough to pick up the slack.

"I think that's kind of the way this team is going to be," Stout said. "We've got a long ways to go, but I'm pleased with our progress."