FERRIDAY — The speedy Rayville Lady Hornets couldn’t handle the size of the Ferriday Lady Trojans.

The Lady Trojans moved to 15-3 with the 75-54 win over Rayville.

“Rayville is know for their speed,” Ferriday head coach Lisa Abron said. “Everyone started to get fatigued.”

The Lady Trojans jumped out to an early 18-7 lead in the first period.

The Lady Hornets couldn’t respond in the second and things got even worse when Shareka Brown fell awkwardly and dislocated her thumb.

“We already had two starters injured before the game,” Rayville head coach Damien West said. “Shareka is our defensive leader. She achors the pressure defense we run. Losing her definitely hurt us.”

Jasmine Butler got 15 of her 19 points in the first half.

“Our defense wasn’t what should have been,” Abron said. “But we were able to dominate the boards and get some easy baskets.”

Rayville kept Ferriday off balanced in the second half by using a combination of man defense and full court pressure.

“We had too many turnovers,” Abron said. “My point guard is young and panicked when the pressure came. It’s something we have to work on in practice.”

Jasmine Upchurch stepped up her game in the second half and scored 14 points to keep the Lady Trojans going.

Despite having four players in double figures and getting the win, Abron said she saw a number things needing attention with the most important being conditioning.

“Rayville is a lot faster than what we are used to and there are some teams in our district like them,” she said. “We have to get in shape before then.”

Ferriday boys 57, Rayville 55

ferriday — The Ferriday Trojans survived a near collapse Tuesday night.

They defeated the Rayville Hornets 57-55 on lay up by Joshua Upchurch with less than five seconds left.

Ferriday dominated the first half going into the halftime with a 29-18 lead. They outscored the Hornets 14-5 in the second period.

“We had a terrible second quarter,” Rayville head coach Larry Wilson said. “We tend to play flat on the road and that’s what happened in the first half.”

Down by 11, the Hornets came out firing in the third period. Led by Detronie Jackson and Winzell Robinson, they outscored Ferriday 22-12 to cut the lead to one.

“We played exceptionally well in the first half but came out a little cold and sluggish in the third,” Ferriday head coach K.G. Watkins said. “We allowed them to get back into the game.”

Kenny Bell tied the game at 47 for Rayville with 4:40 left in the fourth period but Ferriday was able to take the lead back when the fouls started to mount up.

Mike Tennessee hit two free throws with 2:22 left on the clock to put the Trojans back up by two.

“I felt like we didn’t get some breaks we should have but that’s basketball,” Wilson said. “We couldn’t get some shots to go down in the first half but we responded to the pressure and fought hard.”

Jackson hit two, clutch 3-pointers in the fourth, the most important came with 18 seconds left to tie the game at 55.

“Rayville is a very good team,” Watkins said. “They started raining threes on us.”

After tuning the ball, Ferriday found themselves back on defense. Matthew Smith forced a key turnover and drove down the court to attempt a layup.

The shot bounced off the rim and Upchurch gathered the rebound to find the basket for the winning shot.

“Matt Smith was all over the floor tonight,” Watkins said. “He was Mr. Defense. He created some crucial turnovers for us.”

The Trojans, led by DeMarco Lewis’ 17, had a total of four players in double figures.

“Any win is a good win,” Watkins said. “I’m proud of the way we played and hung in there. A win like this only adds confidence to the team. It’s a sign of a winning program when you have the tenacity to keep stay in there.”

Earl Williams led the Hornets with 14 points followed by Jackson’s 12, all on 3-pointers.