Frustration had started to set in for the Lady Broncos after two close losses last week to TSSAA opponents, but Boyd finally broke through Monday in the Smoky Mountain Thanksgiving Classic. Behind a huge night from Laney Copeland, the Lady Broncos topped Munford 53-43 in Pigeon Forge.

Copeland, the team's lethal junior shooting guard, had 19 points to help Boyd earn its second win this season. The Lady Broncos are now 1-2 against TSSAA teams, having lost by one and nine points to Rhea County and Grundy County last week before breaking through against the 3A Mustangs. 

Copeland's outside shooting played a big role in the victory. She hit five triples, including three in a row at the start of the game as Boyd built a lead it wouldn't relinquish.

Seeing shots going in was a sight for coach Tim Page's sore eyes. The Lady Broncos couldn't buy a bucket against the Lady Jackets on the road last week, but Page was giving thanks for his team's scorching shooting against the Cougars.

"We know we're a better scoring team than we've shown at times this year, so it's nice to see the shots finally falling," said Page, who is in his fourth year at Boyd. "Our team seemed to feed off the made shots (against Munford) and it allowed us to get into our press too. I think we slowly wore them down as the game went along."

Munford, which beat Boyd 51-34 in a Christmas tourney last year, tried to combat the Lady Broncos' speed and shooting with sheer power. The Cougars were bullies on the boards, trying to get second and third looks to fall all night. Boyd was able to hold its own though, which enabled the team to get back into the win column.

"We've talked about rebounding all year and it's going to be a key in every game. We're not the biggest team, but we have to fight for everything. We're slowly turning into a team that will battle for every inch on the court," said Page.

Paige Sweeten also had a breakout game against Munford, scoring a season-high 18 points. Sweeten nailed two triples and was a blur in transition. 

Krista Chisam used the glass to put the game out of reach, banking in a 3-pointer with 4:30 left that gave Boyd a 16-point lead in the fourth. It was part of a six-point quarter for the junior. 

From there, the Lady Broncos coasted to their first big win of 2022-23.