MERRY HILL – A balanced scoring attack for the Lady Warriors here Thursday night was the recipe for success.

Ashtyn Mizelle’s 13-point was a team-high while Casey Belch added nine points and Taylor Sexton had eight for the Lady Warriors as they topped Columbia High School 41-32 for their first win this season.

The two teams entered the final period of play deadlocked at 26-all, but the fourth quarter belonged to Lawrence as the Lady Warriors scored the first eight points of the period and went on to victory.

It was senior Casey Belch who got things started in the fourth quarter as she hit back-to-back buckets and added a free throw to give Lawrence a 31-26 lead at the 6:32 mark.

Taylor Sexton added a bucket moments later to push the lead to seven (33-26) before Columbia finally scored. Shonda Hill and Savannah Westover had consecutive buckets for the Lady Wildcats as they closed within three, but Mizelle scored at the 3:09 mark to push Lawrence back ahead 35-20.

It was Jennifer White that scored four of her six points in the final two and a half minutes of the game to seal the victory. Kendra Spruill added a free throw as Lawrence led 40-30.

Westover stopped the run with a hoop for Columbia, but Mizelle’s free throw late in the game sealed the nine-point win.

“I was pleased with our team effort, especially on defense,” said third-year Warrior skipper Jack Williford, whose team improved to 1-3 for the season.

The game started well for the Lady Warriors as, after a Kenya Burton hoop for the Wildcats, Lawrence got back-to-back baskets from Belch and Mizelle. Columbia tied the contest on a Westover bucket, but Mizelle had four straight free throws to give Lawrence a four-point edge (8-4).

They held that same four-point lead after one quarter with the score 10-6.

Mizelle scored the first hoop of the second period to push Lawrence’s lead to six which would be the Lady Warriors’ largest lead of the period.

Columbia rallied back thanks to a 6-2 run late in the second quarter and tied the game at 17-all, but Mizelle scored as the first half ended to make it 19-17 in favor of Lawrence at the intermission.

The Lady Warriors scored the first two points of the third quarter on a Belch bucket, but Burton had three straight points to close Columbia within one point (21-20).

The Lady Warriors then scored five of the next seven to push out to a 26-22 lead thanks to Sextons’ three points, but Columbia closed the period on a 6-0 run that established the tie score heading into the final quarter.

The Lady Warriors ended with Spruill adding three points and Ashton Lyle adding two. Burton led Columbia with 14 while Westover had 12.

Lawrence will be back in action Monday (Dec. 7) when they travel to Oakwood School for a non-conference outing.