By KEVIN ECKLEBERRY

Daily News

It’s been a nice luxury for the LaGrange Academy Lady Warriors.

Last season there were six players on the varsity team, which not only made things challenging on game night, but also during practice because of the low number of bodies available.

It’s a different story this season for Bethany Howard, who is in her second season as LaGrange Academy’s head coach.

“I’ve got 13 players this year, and we had six last year, so I’m very excited about that,” Howard said. “Practice is different. We’ve got more (players), so practice is more intense. We have more, so we can do more.”

On Tuesday night, LaGrange Academy (1-2) continued its season with a 49-36 loss to Oak Mountain Academy.

LaGrange Academy was unable to overcome a difficult second quarter when it was outscored 20-8 to fall behind 31-13 at the half.

LaGrange Academy hung tough in the second half and kept things competitive, but it was Oak Mountain securing the road win.

LaGrange Academy and Oak Mountain could conceivably face each other again down the road in the state tournament.

“We may see them again. You never know,” Howard said. “They’d be at that GISA tournament if we all made it.”

Kelsey Cotton led LaGrange Academy with 15 points, Kayla McBride added seven points, and Ivey Portis scored five points.

Laney Lackey didn’t score, but Howard appreciated the effort she played with.

“All four of her fouls I loved,” Howard said. “They were great effort fouls.”

Joining the returning players is eighth-grader Anna Beth Kinnersley, who had two points in Tuesday’s game.

“She’s nervous still,” Howard said. “She’ll play like an eighth-grader, but I like her on the court, and I like her at practice. I’m trying to put her out there as much as possible.”

Also on Tuesday, LaGrange Academy’s boys’ team lost to Oak Mountain 56-47 in a hard-fought game.

After falling behind 17-6 after the first quarter, the Warriors (2-3) cut their deficit to 36-31 at the half, and they trailed 49-41 as the fourth quarter got underway.

Terence Broaden led the Warriors with 18 points, including eight points in the second quarter.

Andrew Knight added 14 points for the Warriors while making three 3-pointers.

Elijah Godfrey scored nine points, Mark Mittasch contributed six points, and Trey Reeves made a 3-pointer and scored five points.

Ken Klinger, LaGrange Academy’s second-year head coach, is pleased with the way the team is coming together.

“They’re meshing pretty good,” Klinger said. “I feel like our team is more of a team this year. They’re playing hard. It’s the second year under me too, so they kind of understand our system. All that’s good.”

LaGrange Academy’s teams host Furtah Prep on Friday, with the girls’ game tipping off at 6 p.m., and the boys’ game to follow.