COVINGTON – The rivalry between Covington and Miami East continues to thrive with each sport as nearly every contest seems to be a battle from start to finish.

Saturday’s contest between the Lady Buccs and Lady Vikings was yet another thriller as Covington battled back from an early ten-point deficit to pull out a 40-36 victory.

Miami East controlled the game early as it built a 14-4 lead after one as Covington only managed to drop in two buckets by Gracie Anderson and Maggie Anderson.

The Lady Buccs battled back to cut the deficit to 22-18 at the break by outscoring Miami East 14-8 in the second. Maggie Anderson caught fire by knocking down a trey and a pair of buckets, while Carlie Besecker scored two baskets and three free throws.

Covington’s defense picked it up a notch in the second half by limiting Miami East to 14 points on two three-pointers, three two-point buckets and two free throws.

The Lady Buccs managed just five field goals in the second half, but took advantage of opportunities at the free throw line by making 11 of 16 attempts in the final two periods.

Overall, Covington held a huge advantage at the free throw line by making 14 of 20 attempts throughout the entire contest, while Miami East was 2-for-4.

Carlie Besecker and Maggie Anderson accounted for 34 of the 40 points put up by Covington was Besecker scored 18 and Anderson had 16. Gracie Anderson and Meg Rogers tallied three points each.

Covington improves to 7-3 overall and 5-2 in the TRC. Next up is a non-conference matchup at Anna on Thursday.

SCORE BY QUARTERS:
Miami East – 14 – 8 – 6 – 8 = 36
Covington – 4 – 14 – 12 – 10 = 40

COVINGTON SCORING:
Carlie Besecker – 18
Maggie Anderson – 16
Gracie Anderson – 3
Meg Rogers – 3

MIAMI EAST SCORING:
Maryn Gross – 18
Logan Phillips – 5
Mara Fine – 5
Camryn Francis – 4
Katie Paulus – 2
Mariah Mosselman – 2

THREE-POINT SCORING:
Covington – Maggie Anderson (2)
Miami East – Logan Phillips (1), Mara Fine (1)