Kelly beats Portageville

PORTAGEVILLE - The Kelly Lady Hawks won a physical road game Monday, downing the Portageville Lady Bulldogs 59-50.

Shooting 43 free throws, Kelly used a 19-11 advantage in the second quarter to take a 27-24 halftime lead and held off the Lady Bulldogs in the second half.

"It was a very physical game," said Kelly coach Rod McQuerter. "Portageville is a very well-coached team."

Portageville was led in scoring by standout Ashley Brown who finished with 24 points.

"Ashley Brown is a heck of a player," McQuerter said. "We couldn't do anything with her. But the girls played hard and fought through some things. It was a total team effort tonight."

Kelly (17-6) was led in scoring by Kelly Essner's 13 points. Rachel Kline added 10 points in the win.

Kelly will be back in action Thursday when they travel to Oran.