By Russell Frye For the Enquirer

The Priceville Lady Bulldogs, led by Coach Terrie Nelson, have opened up the 2018-19 season by winning their first five games – over Decatur, Lawrence County, Cold Springs, Mae Jemison and Buckhorn.

Nelson said she is proud of how her team has started the season particularly noting the intensity of the whole team as well as the leadership of the three returning starters. She said she is pleased with the way younger players are contributing to every game. “We still have areas that need improving, but our goal is to get better every game.”

Priceville 63, Decatur 32

Priceville opened the 2018-19 season on the road playing the Decatur High School Lady Red Raiders. They Lady Bulldogs started off the season in a big way on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball in, winning 63 to 32. The Lady Bulldogs opened the game by outscoring the Lady Red Raiders 24-3 in the first quarter and led 41-10 at halftime. The second half was played to a 22-22 draw, with Priceville playing a lot of younger players to help gain some experience for the season’s long haul.

Priceville was led by Kathleen Wheeler with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven steals. Skyler Benson scored 13 points, and Jenna Walker led the team with 10 assists. As a team, the Lady Bulldogs had 33 rebounds, 19 steals and four blocked shots.

All 14 players on the roster saw action in the game, with eight players contributing to the scoring column.

Priceville 64, Lawrence County 26

Priceville played the first home game of the season against the Lady Red Devils of Lawrence County. The Lady Bulldogs took control of the game early by playing stingy defense and allowing the Lady Red Devils to score only six points in the first half. They led 33-6 at halftime and put the game out of reach in the third quarter.

Priceville was led by Walker with 19 points and nine assists. Wheeler chipped in 12 points and five rebounds. Benson scored 11 points.

The Lady Bulldogs had 32 rebounds, 16 assists and 19 steals. Fourteen players contributed in one way or another in the Lady Bulldogs’ victory.

Priceville 69, Cold Springs 64

In the first game of the Hartselle Thanksgiving Tournament, the Lady Bulldogs faced off with the Lady Eagles of Cold Springs High School.

The Lady Bulldogs faced adversity for the first time this season as the Lady Eagles controlled the action for much of the game. The Lady Bulldogs trailed 18-15 after the first quarter and then 33-32 at halftime. Coming out of the locker room in the third quarter, the Lady Eagles extended their lead to 54-46. However, in the fourth quarter the Lady Bulldogs offense and defense took over the game, outscoring the Lady Eagles 23-10 to win by a final score 69-64.

Priceville was led in scoring by Wheeler and Benson with the pair scoring 25 points each. Walker got the Lady Bulldogs’ first double-double of the season in scoring 12 points and a team high 16 assists.

The Lady Bulldogs finished with 28 rebounds, 20 assists, seven steals and six blocks, and Priceville moved to 3-0 for the season.

During the game, Wheeler became the all-time leading scorer for the Priceville Lady Bulldogs as she passed previous all- time leading scorer Pressley Darling’s 1,503 career points. Wheeler now holds the record with 1,523 points, and this number will be sure to grow, as the Lady Bulldogs will play in more than 25 more games this season.

Priceville 55, Mae Jemison 49

Priceville started Thanksgiving week at Hartselle High School with a morning tip-off against the Lady Jaguars from Mae Jemison High. The Lady Bulldogs opened the game outscoring the Lady Jags 19-15 in the first, and they led 33-22 at halftime.

Priceville moved the lead to 45-30 after the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, the Lady Jags outscored the Lady Bulldogs 19–12 to make the final score 55-49.

The Lady Bulldogs were led by Wheeler, who scored a team-high 23 points, and by Benson who tallied their second double-double of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Walker pitched in eight points and eight assists. The Lady Bulldogs finished with 33 rebounds, 19 assists, 18 steals and four blocks.

Once again, Priceville celebrated a milestone for a senior player, as Skyler Benson scored her 1,000th point during the game.

Priceville 65, Buckhorn 47

The Lady Bulldogs finished off the Hartselle Thanksgiving Tournament with a 65-47 win over the Buckhorn Lady Bucks. Once again, the Lady Bulldogs defense led the way in the first half, as Priceville outscored the Lady Bucks 18-4 in the first quarter and led 37-17 at halftime. They extended their lead to 61-31 going into the fourth quarter. The Lady Bucks outscored Priceville 16-4 in the fourth quarter to make the final score 65-47.

Priceville was once again led by the trio of Wheeler, Benson and Walker. Wheeler scored a season-high 32 points and finished with six rebounds, five assists and four steals. Benson scored 12 points and led the Lady Bulldogs with eight rebounds. Walker scored 12 points and led the team with seven assists.

Buckhorn was led by Mackenzie White with 10 points and C. Tibbs with nine points.

Priceville moves to 5-0 for the season. The Lady Bulldogs played the 6A Hartselle Tigers Nov. 26 and will take on their first area game of the year with the Danville Lady Hawks Nov. 30 at home.