Jim Walker
jim.walker@irontontribune.com

PORTSMOUTH — Even on just one good leg, Emily Compliment stood above the defense.
Compliment shook off the effects of a sprained ankle and scored 19 points while Kasey Murphy had 18 points and nine rebounds to lead the Coal Grove Lady Hornets to a 62-35 Ohio Valley Conference win over the Portsmouth Lady Trojans on Monday.
Freshman Addi Dillow scored 13 points as the Lady Hornets played without leading scorer Alexis Hall.
“Compliment was playing on a sore ankle and was able to score 19,” said Lady Hornets’ coach Rick Roach. “Dillow stepped up and played a lot of minutes in Hall’s absence and scored 13. Dolen played sparingly due to foul trouble and still managed six rebounds.
“The key factor in the game was Murphy’s nine rebounds and 19 points. I have been talking to my girls about matching the aggressive style of others players. She never let up the whole night.”
Coal Grove is now 3-0 overall and 1-0 in the OVC. The Lady Hornets host Fairland in a league showdown on Thursday.
“We are going to have to get it together and prepare for our toughest matchup of the year on Thursday. We know we are going to see a lot of pressure the whole game,” said Roach.
Jasmine Eley scored 15 points and Sharia Kearns 14 for Portsmouth (0-3, 0-2).
The game was tied at 12 after the first quarter despite eight points by Murphy. Eley and Kearns combined for nine points and Hannah Hughes buried a trifecta.
But Compliment had eight points in the second quarter and Bailey McKnight had her own 3-pointer as Coal Grove took a 30-15 halftime lead. Hughes hit another triple to account for all of Portsmouth’s scoring.
Murphy and Dillow had four points each in the third quarter as the lead went to 44-24.
Compliment converted 6-of-6 from the foul line and Dillow scored five points including a 3-pointer as Coal Grove outscored Portsmouth 18-11 in the fourth quarter.
Coal Grove    12    18    14    18    =    62
Portsmouth    12    3    9    11    =    35
COAL GROVE (3-0, 1-0): Bailey McKnight 0 1 0-4 3, Emily Compliment 5 1 6-6 19, Kasey Murphy 6 0 6-14 18, Destiny Dolen 1 0 1-2 3, Lauren Crum 1 0 0-0 2, Addi Dillow 2 5 1 0-0 13, Halie Frazier 0 0 0-0 0, Makayla Daniels 1 0 0-0 2, Jaidyn Griffith 1 0 0-0 2, Emileigh Bryant 0 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23-58 13-26 62. 3-pt. goals: 3. Fouls: 11. Fouled out: None.
PORTSMOUTH (0-3, 0-2): Jasmine Eley 2 3 2-2 15, Kylisha Kearns 0 0 0-2 0, Destiny McKenzie 0 0 0-0 0, Sharia Kearns 4 0 6-8 14, Hannah Hughes 0 2 0-0 6, Shai Howard 0 0 0-0 0, Autumn Wright 0 0 0-0 0, Layla Bolden 0 0 0-0 0, Jaiden Rickett 0 0 0-0 0, Layla Kegg 0 0 0-0 0. Totals: 11-59 8-12 35. 3-pt. goals: 5. Fouls: 19. Fouled out: None.