Storm vs. Masonic, part 2

New Life Storm 36 Masonic Red Devils 19

The New Life Storm avenged a loss to the Lady Red Devils of the Masonic Home with a convincing homecourt victory by 17 points. On the game's first possession Shelby blocked a shot by the Red Devils' center, who dominated the last meeting between the two teams with 24 points. That was one of 3 first half blocks by Shelby and set the tone for a strong Storm defensive effort that limited the Red Devils to only 7 first half points. On the offensive end, Hannah got off to a fast start, hitting 2 early 3-pointers and scoring 8 of the first 10 Storm points, as NLC jumped ahead 12-2. The Storm held a double-digit lead for most of the rest of the game. As in the previous game against East Wake, this was a good overall team effort, as this very young, inexperienced group starts to show some signs of gelling. Shelby led the team with 15 points and 16 rebounds.

Storm vs. East Wake

New Life Storm 47 East Wake Academy Eagles 34

The NLC Storm put together a strong team effort to win a big road game against the East Wake Eagles in Zebulon. Unlike the first meeting between the two teams, which saw the Storm trail for most of the game before making a late comback for the win, this time the Storm took the lead 3-2 on a 3-pointer by Mary and never trailed again. The Storm played with good energy and moved the ball well, and when Emily hit a basket to make the score 14-6, they had 6 field goals made by 6 different players. NLC led at the half 27-13. In the 2nd half, the Eagles pressed full court, but the Storm handled it well with good passing and spacing. The Eagles were able to cut the lead to 9 points, but baskets by Mary and Ele'Jah pushed the lead back out again, and when Emily and Shelby executed a pick-and-roll that led to a basket by Shelby at the 3rd quarter buzzer, the score was 38-24. The Eagles never got the lead under double-figures again. Emily led a balanced scoring effort with 11 points. Shelby had 10 points, 18 rebounds, and 3 assists. Hannah also had 3 assists and Katie grabbed 5 steals.

Storm vs. Norlina, part 3

New Life Storm 41 Norlina Christian Crusaders 16

For the third time this season, the New Life Storm easily handled the Crusaders of Norlina Christian School. Playing at home in the NLC Activities Center for the first time in almost 7 weeks, the Storm controlled the game throughout, taking a 10-point lead in the first quarter, then holding the Crusaders to 1 point over the 2nd and 3rd quarters to go up 37-6. With the game well in hand, the Storm was able to use the second half to work on some different offensive and defensive sets. Shelby had her third straight double-double by halftime and finished with 15 points and 15 rebounds, and Katie, starting for the 2nd straight game at PG, had 5 steals to go with 6 points.

Congrats to the boys varsity team for their first win - a 12-point victory over Norlina. Great game guys!!

Storm vs. RCA, part 2

New Life Storm 37 Raleigh Christian Academy Eagles 44

For the second time, the New Life Storm gave a good effort but dropped a game on the road at Raleigh Christian Academy. The Storm defense held the Eagles scoreless for more nearly 7 minutes in the first half and pulled ahead by 8 points, but missed a number of good shot opportunities that would have stretched the lead farther. In the second half, RCA brought full court pressure and half-court traps, and in the 3rd quarter the Storm had more turnovers than shot attempts, allowing the Eagles to pull ahead. NLC continued to compete hard and on two occasions late in the 4th quarter, first when Katie got a steal and layup, and later when Hannah hit a deep 3-pointer, they cut it to a one-possession game. The Eagles answered each time and hit FT's in the final minute for the final margin. For the Storm, Hannah and Shelby each had 10 points to lead the team, while Shelby also grabbed 19 rebounds, and Katie had 4 steals.

Storm vs. Masonic

New Life Storm 37 Masonic Red Devils 49

The Storm dropped a game on the road against the Masonic Red Devils in Oxford by 12 points. NLC shot only 18% for the game, with the Red Devils' big, athletic center blocking and altering many shots. The Storm stayed close for most of the first half, with Shelby getting off to fast start and scoring 7 first-quarter points. In the second half, the Devils used a lot of fast break points and put back baskets to pull away. Shelby led the team in scoring and rebounding, with 11 points and 21 boards.

Storm vs Lighthouse

New Life Storm 26 Lighthouse Eagles 46

The NLC Storm faced off with conference rival Lighthouse for the first time this season and battled hard, but came away on the short end of a 20-point loss. The nationally-ranked Eagles, with 10 seniors and 2 players signed to play next season at Anderson University, were undefeated coming in and had only won twice by fewer than 20 points. Early in the game, a combination of nerves and quick whistles had the Storm in foul trouble and out of sync. After scoring only 2 points in the first quarter, they began attacking with more confidence. Though the tough Lighthouse defense allowed few easy shots, NLC did a good job drawing fouls and scoring at the line. The Storm also defended well, allowing few easy shots for the Eagles. NLC trailed by 13 at the half, and though they prevented any Lighthouse runs to blow the game open they were never able to muster a run of their own to make the game close down the stretch, as Lighthouse gradually pulled away to the final margin. Shelby led the Storm in this game in both scoring and rebounds, with 9 points and 18 boards.

Storm vs. RCA

New Life Storm 46 Raleigh Christian Academy Eagles 51

For the second year in a row, the NLC Storm were the guests for Homecoming at Raleigh Christian Academy. This year, though, the Storm was not able to dampen the festivities, losing 51-46. The game was back and forth for most of the first quarter, but turnovers helped the Eagles pull out to an 8-point lead at the beginning of the second quarter and maintain a 5-point halftime advantage. NLC came out running in the third quarter and took the lead, but RCA answered. They again took the lead early in the 4th quarter on a 3 by Emily Stone, but RCA hit a 3-pointer to retake the lead and would never trail again. Two 3-pointers by Hannah and an RCA turnover gave the Storm the ball down 3 points with 2 minutes to go, but several 3-point tries for the tie did not connect, then RCA got several chances at the other end with several offensive rebounds and made it a 2-possession game down the stretch. Hannah led the Storm in scoring with 14, Shelby and Leigh had 13 and 11 rebounds respectively.

Storm vs. Norlina Christian

New Life Storm 55 Norlina Christian School Crusaders 19

The NLC Storm dominated their second meeting of the season with the Crusaders of Norlina Christian School, jumping out to a 38-4 halftime lead on their way to a 55-19 victory. The Storm overwhelmed the Crusaders in the second quarter, holding Norlina scoreless while putting in 22 points - their highest-scoring quarter of the season. For the game, the Storm had 25 steals, their highest total of the season. Shelby led a balanced scoring attack with 12 points, while Emily had 11 and Ele'Jah 10. Leigh led in rebounding with 9 boards, Hannah had 4 assists, and Emily 7 steals.