Many accomplishments litter Kyle Turnham's résumé as he's been a distinguished leader on the sidelines for nearly four decades. That doesn't mean Turnham still can't experience a few firsts though.
Turnham picked up his first win at Charlie Dalton Gym as coach of the Lady Pioneers Tuesday, watching his WCHS girls squad smash Siegel 57-19.
Trinity Reynolds hit four triples on her way to 14 points and Bri Taylor had another impressive night with 13 points as the Lady Pioneers snapped a five-game losing streak.
Following the victory, Turnham turned all the praise on his Lady Pioneers for their impressive effort at home.
"It's still early, but that was easily our most complete game of the year. We have played a tough schedule - with all but two games on the road - and, while we've been competitive in all but one, we hadn't had a happy locker room since the opening game," said Turnham. "I was really happy for the girls. They've been working hard to improve and it's nice to have them see their hard work can pay off."
Warren County (2-5) set the tone with its press defense, keeping Siegel from crossing halfcourt for minutes at a time in the first half while the Lady Pioneers built a 21-1 lead. Reynolds and Brinlee Griffith had back-to-back triples to push it to a 20-point advantage in the first quarter, while Taylor was key on the press and in the paint - torturing the Stars on both offense and defense.
"Defensively, I thought we were active and disruptive. Our detail and execution were a major part of that. Our press got us off to a great start, forcing multiple turnovers and creating early easy scoring chances for us," said Turnham.
Leading 23-7 after eight minutes, Warren County locked down even further as it backed out of the press. Siegel only scored nine points in the final three quarters, failing to get open looks, extra shots off rebounds or crack the Lady Pioneer zone.
"Even when we changed into our matchup zone, the energy level remained high and we were still able to force turnovers. We never allowed Siegel to develop any offensive rhythm," said Turnham.
Kealey Simpson gave the Lady Pioneers a little extra surge right before halftime, finishing a lefty layup on a putback while being fouled with 1.9 seconds left in the first half. The junior connected on the free throw as well, making it 36-10 at the break.
Scoring continued to spread out in the second half for the Lady Pioneers, including freshmen Brynlee Chisam and Cortlyn Porter hitting fourth-quarter triples, much to the delight of the Lady Pioneer bench and crowd at Charlie Dalton Gym.
"We had been struggling offensively and a lack of execution had been a big part of that. We've been working hard to be more detail driven and tonight we executed the best we have all season," said Turnham after the game. "I was especially pleased with how we shared the ball. We put nine players in the scoring column. That illustrates that when we execute we become significantly more efficient and score the ball much more easily."
Warren County will try to carry the momentum of Tuesday's win into the DTC Christmas Classic starting Friday. The Lady Pioneers are scheduled to face Clinton at 3 p.m. and Cumberland County Saturday, Dec. 21 at 3 p.m. in Gordonsville.
Lady Pioneer scoring - Reynolds 14, Taylor 13, Simpson 7, Griffith 6, Chisam 5, Porter 3, Zoie Verge 3, Addison Steakley 2, Alyssa Parsley 2, Aubrey Oleksik 2
