NATCHEZ &045; When Sierra Massey hit a shot to cap an 8-0 Lady Saints run and cut Central Private’s lead to 32-26, it appeared Trinity might be able to fight their way back and win the game.

In the end, Trinity’s inability to score cost them in a 46-33 loss to the Lady Rebels Saturday.

&uot;I thought we were going to pull it out,&uot; Trinity’s Mallory Archer said.

Massey and Archer were the two main reasons the Lady Saints might have pulled it out. Together they scored 25 points and played strong defense. Trinity held the usually high-scoring Central Private team to just five points in the first half using an aggressive zone defense.

&uot;We did a super job on defense,&uot; Trinity head coach Melanie Hall said. &uot;They got a few inside looks, but I thought for the most part we stopped what they wanted to do.&uot;

The Lady Rebels had a 5-2 advantage at the end of the first quarter before kicking their offense into high gear to start the second. Trinity briefly took a 9-8 lead in the second before the Lady Rebels took over with a 12-3 run to end the half.

Central Private scored 13 points in the second, led by six from forward Ashley Peairs. The Lady Rebels never trailed in the second half.

Trinity fought back in the third, closing the gap to six points early in the fourth quarter. Archer could have made the lead just three points, but she missed a three-point shot and the Lady Rebels took control again.

&uot;We did a decent job. It wasn’t one of our best games,&uot; Central Private head coach Jan Williams said. &uot;We let them back in it in the second half, but we didn’t get flustered.&uot;

The Lady Rebels full-court defense was the difference in the game. Trinity had success beating it early in the second half, which allowed the Lady Saints to get some scores and narrow the gap.

Central Private’s lead was simply too much to overcome and the Lady Rebels expanded their lead through the end of the game.