BROOKSVILLE – For seven years Hernando girls basketball coach Kevin Bittinger has run the Hernando Holiday Classic. But Wednesday, as the three-day tournament came to an end, brought something new.
For the first time, the host Lady Leopards found themselves hoisting the championship trophy, as they knocked off county-rival Weeki Wachee in overtime of the championship game, 45-38.
“You want good games, but the girls played hard. They deserved it. They worked their butts off. It feels good,” Bittinger said. “The girls were motivated and it’s a good rivalry right now. I know they’re motivated to play us, we’re motivated to play them. It was a good ballgame.”
It was also a rare inter-county win for Hernando (10-3), which has lost to Springstead and Central as well as the Lady Hornets (12-5) on Nov. 29, 33-25.
“We can’t seem to win county games,” Bittinger said. “But all those are by single digits. Even in losses, we’re close. I’ve got a good group of kids and they work hard. We’re as athletic as we’ve ever been, so as long as they trust that and trust what we’re doing, I think we’re going to be OK.”
The Lady Leopards defeated St. Petersburg-Northeast to open their tournament slate on Monday, 42-38. Ali Bronson finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds.
They followed with a 37-32 victory over South Sumter on Tuesday, behind 12 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and three steals from Bronson. Taylor Neblock added 11 points, while Taylyn Murwin had 10 boards and five assists.
Bronson scored 16 points against Weeki Wachee, as Hernando rallied from a 21-11 halftime deficit. Neblock also had 16, and Nakayla Roberts chipped in 12.
“We’re going to have to continue to get better, because teams are going to get better. We’re going to have to continue to work,” Bittinger said. “But we feel as though we’re a team that can compete in the district. We want to see what we can do.”
Hannah Storie had 14 points, with four 3-pointers, for the Lady Hornets. Seytia Hill had 13 points. Weeki Wachee won over South Sumter on Monday, 60-20, and Lutz-Steinbrenner on Tuesday, 55-40.
Nature Coast lost to Clearwater Central Catholic on Monday, 50-44, and Northeast on Tuesday, 51-40. The Lady Sharks (5-11) topped South Sumter on Wednesday, 49-46. Due to a team dropping out, Central (4-8) only ended up playing once, losing to Steinbrenner on Monday, 41-33.
All-Tournament team selections were Bronson, Weeki Wachee’s Taylor Miller, Nature Coast’s Kayla Langley and Central’s Maddie Lewis.
Follow Chris Bernhardt Jr. on Twitter @cpbernhardtjr.