Lady Bison rally for 16th consecutive win; Bison, Lady Bison eye district tourney at Bison Arena

Carlisle's DeShaye Ricks is fouled while making a move to the basket against Hazen. (Photos by Mark Buffalo)

By Mark Buffalo

Staff Writer

@markbuffalo

The Carlisle Lady Bison, ranked third in Class 2A by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and ninth by MaxPreps.com, rallied from a seven-point fourth quarter deficit to beat Concord 50-48 on Friday night.

Carlisle ends the regular season at 24-3, which includes a 16-game winning streak. The Lady Bison have not lost since Dec. 16 when it fell to the Lonoke Lady Jackrabbits. However, Carlisle avenged that loss in the finals of the Goldfish Classic in late December. 

In Friday’s win over Concord, Carlisle trailed 38-36 after three quarters and trailed by seven midway through the final period before rallying to get the win, which was only their fourth win of the second semester that didn’t include a running clock. Others were at Brinkley and twice against England. 

“My players showed grit and determination to get that win tonight,” Carlisle coach Jonathan Buffalo said. “We faced adversity and overcame it. It was a great win.”

Kylie Warren led the Lady Bison with 21 points. DeShaye Ricks had 18. Blakely Ellis had six. Heather Bowlan had three and Kiara Miller and Shelby Hancock each added a free throw. 

Carlisle's Kamryn Taylor and Braiden Jenkins both grab a rebound against Hazen. 

District tournament

Bison Arena will be the host for the 2A-3 district tournament, which starts Monday. 

In the girls bracket, Carlisle is the top seed from the south division. In the boys bracket, Carlisle is the third seed from the south.

The Lady Bison are already qualified for the regional tournament, which will be held the following week at Marked Tree. They will play in the semifinals Friday at 4 p.m.. Des Arc and Palestine-Wheatley play in one first-round game Monday at 4 p.m. Hazen and Augusta play in another on Tuesday at 4 p.m The winners of those two games will play each other Thursday at 4 p.m. Carlisle will play the winner of that game.

The girls championship game is Feb. 17 at 7 p.m. The third-place game is Feb. 17 at 4 p.m.

The Bison will play Cross County on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. If they win, they will play the winner of Augusta and Hazen on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. And if they win that game, they will qualify for the regional tournament and play Clarendon in the semifinals Friday at 5:30 p.m. The championship game is Feb. 17 at 8:30 p.m. The third-place game is Feb. 17 at 5:30 p.m.