In the Parsons Vikings girls’ final tune-up for midseason tournament week, they fell to the Burlington Wildcats, 50-34, on Thursday night at home.
“I was proud of the girls. I told them to come out and compete and play hard for four quarters,” Parsons head coach Erik Lyons said. “We emphasized taking care of the ball, rebounding and competing. And we did that. Burlington went on a spurt in the fourth quarter and I’ve got to be better in guiding us through that. I don’t want this program to be built off moral victories.”
Free throws were cataclysmic for the Vikings, who went 8-of-21 from the charity stripe. With the score tied at 4-4 midway through the first quarter, Parsons missed seven straight foul shots.
“Those are big points,” Lyons said. “We could’ve built momentum and got them in deep water. Burlington has cruised through a lot of their games. So it was incumbent on us to put pressure on them. Free throws would’ve done that. We’ve got to have confidence at the line.”
Braelyn Hinman-Mitchell led Parsons with 15 points.
“You could tell they were going to double Ayanna and take her away inside, so Braelyn got to the rim and did a good job,” Lyons said. “She played well even in foul trouble. She’s a very skilled young lady. She’s not afraid of anything.”
Parsons fell to 2-8 overall with the loss.
Up next
Parsons faced Riverton on Monday in the first round of the Lancer Classic at Southeast High School in Cherokee. The Vikings will play three games over the course of the week.
“I feel like we match up very well,” Lyons said. “We’ll have to play very well. We’ve been prepared with the competition we’ve been playing. If we compete at a consistent level, some good things are ahead of us.”
