Liberty-Eylau's basketball teams each used a big quarter in the second half of their respective games to build insurmountable leads.
The Lady Leopards pulled away in the waning minutes with a 16-1 rally to build a 25-point advantage over Atlanta in the girls game and won, 85-58, and the L-E boys used a 15-point swing in the third quarter to go up 23 entering the fourth and held on for a 57-43 victory in both teams' District 14-4A opener Friday at the Rader Dome.
Girls
Liberty-Eylau 85, Atlanta 58
The Lady Leopards had three big runs in the game, to build a 26-15 advantage in the second quarter, a 51-32 lead in the third and the fourth-quarter streak. The Lady Rabbs answered each one, chipping away at their deficit each time to pull within single digits with the exception of the last run, which ended in the final minute.
The Rabbs (9-7, 1-2) shot 39 percent on 23-of-59 from the floor.
Taylor Crabtree had 17 points for Liberty-Eylau, and Amoiya Gentry contributed 16. Eliyah Howard added 13 points, Derrica Henderson had 12 and Kaliyah Thompson had 10. Gentry and Jasmine Daniels grabbed eight boards each, and Henderson added seven grabs.
Atlanta's Keyonna Easter ripped the cords for 22 points to lead all scorers. Teshuna Sheppard had 11, and Shevonia Smith and Kinsey Kelley scored 10 apiece. Sheppard had a double-double with 11 rebounds as well.
Liberty-Eylau won the junior varsity game, 41-18. Aaliyah Thompson led the Leopards with 15 points, and Netro Elana had 13 for the Rabbs.
Atlanta 7 16 16 19 - 58
Liberty-Eylau 11 19 21 34 - 85
ATLANTA (58): S. Smith 4 1-2 10, Sheppard 3 5-8 11, Easter 9 4-13 22, Ka. Kelly 0 1-2 1, Ki. Kelly 5 0-0 10, Collins 2 0-0 4, TOTALS 23 11-25 58.
L-E (85): Crabtree 7 2-4 17, Howard 6 0-1 13, Bailey 2 1-2 5, Carso0n 0 1-2 1, K. Thompson 5 0-0 10, Ka. Norris 2 0-0 5, Daniels 2 2-2 6, Gentry 8 0-1 16, Ke. Norris 0 0-2 0, TEAM TOTALS 38 6-14 85.
3-point goals: ATL-S. Smith; LE-Crabtree, Howard; Ka. Norris. Team fouls: Atlanta 16, Liberty-Eylau 21.
Boys
Liberty-Eylau 57,
Atlanta 43
After a tight first half, the Leopards' halftime adjustments sparked a streak late in the third quarter, and the Rabbs went cold for a period of five minutes.
Liberty-Eylau (12-9, 1-0) closed the third quarter on a 14-0 run, started by Anthony Cunningham's third 3-pointer of the game, and that extended to a 16-0 run to start the fourth, putting L-E up 25 points (51-26).
Atlanta (9-13, 0-1) made a push in the fourth quarter but ran out of time before it was able to pull within single digits.
Cunningham scored 16 points, and Jordyn Pineda-Davis had 10. Decorian Phillips had seven rebounds for L-E.
Quenton Rowe scored 16 for the Rabbs, and Curtis Smith had a double-double with 11 points and 14 rebounds. Atlanta held a 52-35 lead on the boards.
L-E shot 33 percent on 18-of-54, and Atlanta shot 28 percent on 16-of-57.
Atlanta 11 9 6 17 - 43
Liberty-Eylau 11 17 21 8 - 57
ATLANTA (43): Rich 1 0-0 2, Taylor 1 0-0 3, Smith 4 3-4 11, Q. Rowe 6 4-4 16, Robinson 3 0-2 6, Powell 1 3-4 5, TOTALS 16 10-14 43.
L-E (57): Phillips 2 4-5 9, Greer 2 2-2 6, Cunningham 4 5-6 16, Cross 1 0-0 3, Pineda-Davis 3 4-5 10, Barron 2 0-0 4, Gray 3 1-6 7, Caldwell 1 0-0 2, TOTALS 18 16-24 57.
3-point goals: ATL-Taylor; LE-Cunningham 3, Phillips, Cross. Team fouls: Atlanta 15, Liberty-Eylau 23. Fouled out: Gray.