Luther Lady Lion Stanfield earns first triple double of season

Both Lions basketball teams represented at the Stroud 66 Coliseum Classic January 10 – 12. The girls came away with third place, and the boys took fourth.

Both the Lion boys and the Lady Lions won their first games and lost their second ones. Playing on Saturday for third place, the Lady Lions edged out the hosting Stroud Lady Tigers for the win. The Lions, also playing for third, fell to the Tecumseh Savages.

Junior Raychel Stanfield’s averaged 25.3 points for the weekend. In the girls’ first game against Tecumseh, Stanfield earned her first triple double with 32 points, 12 rebounds and 11 steals. Senior Caitlin Bailey scored 20 points against the Savages, sealing the 62-37 victory.

For the boys, junior Tyler Becker and senior Syrus Grisby had the high score averages of 16.3 and 17.6 points, respectively.

The Lions first game, against Oklahoma Christian School, was much closer than the Lady Lions’, but the Luther boys never gave up their lead over the Saints, confirming their place on the winner’s side of the bracket.

Four of the six scorers for the team earned double-digit points. Grisby led with 21, followed by juniors Gerald McCauley, 14; Becker, 13; and Nick Hines, 10.

The second night of the tournament brought challenges for both Lions teams.

Playing against Cushing, three starters on the girls team fouled out in the fourth quarter. With Caitlyn Bailey, Lauren Coates and Shawntae Silva benched at the end of the game from fouling out, the Lady Tigers scraped by the Lions with a six-point, victory.  Final score: 50-44.

Stanfield had 26 points and 13 rebounds.

The boys had a bitter overtime loss against the Seminole Chieftains, a 4A team ranked number 14. In the last seconds of the game, it was Tyler Becker’s three-pointer and a free throw that tied the game at 52-52 at the final buzzer.

In overtime, Sophomore Fredrik Greenhoward downed the first goal for the Lions, but the Chieftains soon followed with a three-pointer. The Chieftains won 55-54.

On Saturday, both Luther teams played for third place.

The girls faced the host team, Stroud. The Lady Lions were down three points at the half, put pulled out a win with a final score of 53-41.

Coach Johnny Vick said the team went with a different defensive strategy, a zone press instead of man-on-man defense, to shake up the Lady Tigers, who they played earlier in the week.

“The kids believed a little more,” Vick said of his nine-member team.

The Lion boys had a tougher game. They came within five points of the win with two minutes left, but couldn’t pull it off and lost 65-53 to the Tecumseh Savages.

Grisby once again led the Lions with 22 points, and Becker had four three-pointers to help earn his 19 points. Grisby also had 15 rebounds.

The Lions have two home games this week. On Tuesday, they host Oklahoma Christian School, and on Friday’s January 18 homecoming night is against Oklahoma Christian Academy.

We showcased photo galleries of the Thursday and Friday Lions’ games in this tournament. Along with the fans who showed up, The Lion Reporter Jacob Factor made the trip to Stroud three days in a row. It has been part of our commitment to cover Luther Sports this year – including our coverage of football, fall softball, cross-country and basketball.

There’s been a lot of miles driven, gas burned, pictures taken, stories written and compensation (though not enough) to Factor, on the belief that fans would appreciate and value the coverage with support. We must now ask more persistently for a commitment from Lions sports fans. If you value this coverage, please support it. We are the only outlet covering Luther sports to this extent, and is part of the “news for our town” vision of The Luther Register. Honestly, we can’t continue without reader and advertiser support. Our advertising rates are very affordable, and we are asking for a monthly gift as low as $5 a month or more. If we can feed our tea, shake and coffee habit, please also support your local news habit. We are asking for voluntary support, while also considering whether a subscription model is more viable which will include a paywall where most content will only be available to paid subscribers.  Support the journalists in your town. You know us.

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