BUNN -- Whether Bunn was without sharpshooting guard Whitney Bunn or not, the Corinth Holders girls showed improvement in the rematch Thursday night.
Corinth (3-20 overall, 3-11 Northern Carolina Conference) trailed by just six points (19-13) at halftime but allowed 21 points in the third quarter as the Wildcats pulled away for a 44-25 triumph in the regular season finale on Senior Night.
Bunn helped her Wildcats beat Corinth by more than 40 points in the first meeting at CHHS a few weeks ago, but missed the rematch due to an ankle injury. The home team had trouble scoring in the first half and was only using its full-court press and trap selectively.
Cyarra Pierson gave Corinth Holders a 2-0 lead just five seconds in, but Bunn took the lead at 3-2 on a 3-pointer by Chepirah Neal with 7:20 left in the first quarter.
Pierson proved to be the Pirates’ best option on offense. She added a 3-pointer to cut the lead to two and later scored on a pass from Samantha Gibson to bring the visitors with four, 11-7, at the end of the quarter.
Both teams had trouble converting shots in the second, particularly Bunn, which held an advantage on the glass (36-19, including 23 on the offensive end) but wasn’t able to connect after grabbing several rebounds.
Corinth went on a 6-0 run – two free throws by Holly Price and baskets by Lindsay Jennings and Kris Neal – to slice the deficit to two (15-13) with three minutes left, but Bunn scored the final four points (free throws by Neal and a basket by Tainasha Vines) to take a 19-13 lead at the break.
The Wildcats then went on an 11-2 run to start the third quarter to pull away. The only points for Corinth in a 5:47 stretch that began late in the second were a pair of free throws by Neal.
Pierson’s basket made it 30-17 with 4:16 left in the third, but Bunn – sparked by defensive pressure – scored 10 straight points to make it 40-17.
Gibson accounted for half of Corinth’s offense (four points on two baskets) in the fourth. Neal and Pierson also added buckets.
Pierson paced CHHS with 11 points while Neal added six.
The Wildcats were led by 16 points from Neal and 10 from Vines.
