Lady Birds Surge Past Salisbury in Second Half
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By Mark Requet
The South Shelby Lady Birds overcame a 12 point deficit in the first half to defeat the Salisbury Lady Panthers 54-43 on Friday, December 5, 2025, at Salisbury High School.
Three pointers by Hannah Gaines and Gracynn Lanpher gave the Lady Birds an early 6-2 lead in the first quarter.
The Lady Panthers went on a 22-6 run to take a 24-12 midway through the second quarter.
Gaines connected on a three with 3:55 left in the second quarter to cut the deficit to 24-15. After a Salisbury basket, Ellie Kuntz scored, then Gaines followed with back-to-back threes to cut it to 26-23 with 1:25 left in the first half.
Hannah Gaines shoots a three pointer against Salisbury on Friday, December 5, 2025. She made six threes in the game. Photograph by Mark Requet
Avery Gough tied the game with a three pointer with 29 seconds left, but a basket by Salisbury gave the Lady Panthers a halftime lead of 28-26.
Bella Cook opened the second half with a three to give the Lady Birds a 29-28 lead.
Gaines scored seven straight points in the third quarter to help build the Lady Birds lead to 36-32 with 4:48 left. Lanpher added a bucket forcing Salisbury to call a timeout.
The Lady Panthers scored a bucket, but Ainsleigh Truitt connected for a three to push the lead to 41-34 with 2:49 left in the third quarter.
Salisbury went on a run to end the quarter and took a 42-41 lead with seconds to go, but two made free throws by Kenzie Wilt gave South Shelby a 43-42 lead after three quarters.
The Lady Panthers tied the game with a free throw early in the fourth quarter, but the Lady Birds clamped down on defense, outscoring Salisbury 11-0 the rest of the way. A three by Gaines gave South Shelby a 46-43 lead. Lanpher scored and added a free throw on the old fashioned three point play to give the Lady Birds a 49-43 lead.
Free throws by Cook and Gough, and a bucket by Charlie Roush helped the Lady Birds pull off the 54-43 win on the road.
Gaines led the Lady Birds with 22 points, including six threes. Lanpher added 10 points.
Roush finished with six rebounds, four assists and three steals.
The Lady Birds, 2-0 overall, compete in the Monroe City Tournament this week.
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