ROBERTSDALE, Ala.—Timely shooting and a suffocating defense paved the way Friday night towards a convincing 47-31 Lady Pirate win over the Bears at Robertsdale. The win gave the Pirates a crucial Class 6A Area 3 win on the road.

“That first quarter started out slow for us,,” said Pirate head coach Tori Johnson. “In the second quarter, with our press, we were able to get four steals in a row. That is what gave us the lead and we were able to keep it up the rest of the game. It started right there in the second quarter

Although the offense put up big numbers, especially in the second half, it was the defense that set the tone the entire evening. The Pirates utilized their press defense along with traps for nearly the entire game which forced numerous Bear turnovers.

“We were trying to pressure the ball as much as we could and jump up and trap.” Johnson said. “They were able to get a hand on a lot of them and get some steals.”

For the second-straight game the Pirates were led in scoring by Haley Melton. Melton began the game like many of her teammates and missed a lot of open looks especially from behind the arc. In the second half Melton took off and finished the game with a game high 18 points for the Pirates.

“We were up by about eight and she made a couple big shots and got us back in it and rolling.” Johnson said. “It was a big momentum change for us.”

The Pirates, whose bench is about 9 players deep, had a major advantage on Tuesday night. They were able to wear down the Bears all night long thanks in large part to a limited Bear bench that featured only three players.

“I like to play all my players and I like to run the floor. It’s good to have fresh legs at the end of the fourth quarter. That’s why I like to play all of them.” Coach Johnson said.

It became evident early that fatigue was going to be a factor on Tuesday. The Pirates finished each of the first three quarters with a scoring run that carried over to the rest of the game.

At the beginning of the second half and the Pirates leading 25-13, the Bears went on a run of their own and slimmed their deficit to nine points. Thanks in large part to the contribution they received from Maddy Petite.