A remarkable comeback by the Alliance High girl’s basketball team fell just short Saturday in a contest against Hot Springs. Down by 12 with under 4 minutes left in the game, the Lady Bulldogs rallied to tie the game at 41 on a three pointer by senior Shyla Salcido. But a free throw by the Bison with a second of the clock proved to be the difference as the guests won the game 42 to 41. The battle played in Alliance had the Dogs down for most of the contest, but a late rally made things interesting down the stretch. Senior Macey Seebohm led the Alliance offense with 22 points while Salcido had 8 points and 8 rebounds. With the loss, the girl’s record now stands at 0 and 4 for the year. Alliance did win the JV game, defeating the Bison 32 to 29.
A three pointer by Bulldog Paz Cody gave the hosts an early lead at 3 to 0. Later in the opening quarter 2 Cody free throws pushed the Dog lead to 5 to 3. However, the momentum quickly went to the Bison after that. An 8 to 0 run gave the visitors an 11 to 5 lead midway through the opener. Seebohm ended the spree with 2 free throws but 2 good scores from the charity stripe finished the first quarter with the Bulldogs down 13 to 7. In the second, both teams tallied 8 points each. Free throws by Seebohm and Salcido plus a basket by Salcido kept the Dogs close. At the 4 minute mark, the Dogs knotted the score at 13 on a goal by Addison Weber. Hot Springs countered with an 8 to 2 run to finish the half. Alliance would get another score by Salcido and the teams went half with the Bison ahead 21 to 15.
In period #3, Alliance would score 7 points, all from Seebohm. Down 10, 2 Seebohm free throws pulled the Bulldog deficit to 8 at 25 to 17. The Bison responded with 5 in a row as the visitors led 30 to 17 with under 3 minutes remaining in the quarter. A 2 pointer by Seebohm followed and a three by the Bulldog guard concluded the period with AHS trailing 31 to 22. The action in the finale was fast and furious. Seebohm began the scoring with a 2 to get Alliance to within 7 at 31 to 24 before the guests answered back with 5 consecutive points to increase their advantage to 36 to 24 with under 5 minutes left. This is where the Dogs began their rally. It started with 2 Seebohm free throws. Following a Bison bucket, Alliance got the ball to Seebohm who came thru with 7 points in a row that cut the Alliance margin to 4 at 38 to 34. A Bison free throw stopped the rally but 2 free throws by Cody with under a minute to play made the score 39 to 36. Hot Springs then pushed their lead to 5 with a pair of free throws but a goal by Bulldog Brooke Bailey kept Alliance within striking. The Dogs were forced then to foul and it worked as the Bison would miss both shots from the line. Down three, the Lady Bulldogs got a game tying three for Salcido that tied the game at 41 with under 10 seconds to play. Hot Springs would miss their last second attempt but a foul was called on the Bulldogs, giving the visitors 2 free throws with under a second to play. The Bison’s first was good and the second was off but Alliance had no time for a last second try. Final Hot Springs 42 Alliance 41
HS 13 8 10 11 42
ALL 7 8 7 19 41
Scoring Seebohm 22 Salcido 8 Cody 7 Weber 2 Bailey 2
Alliance will travel to Torrington on Tuesday and be at home Friday against Chadron.