Lady Hawks drop two in Fort Sill doubleheader Published Jan. 22, 2010 By John Stuart Tinker Public Affairs TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- It was close but no cigar for the Lady Hawks basketball team last weekend. Pitted against a small but quick Fort Sill squad, Tinker had their work cut out for them on the road in a double header Jan. 16-17. "They are short in stature but they hustle. I'm talking hustle," Tinker coach Carlos Hopkins said of Fort Sill. With all the Tinker starters making the trip, the height advantage was decidedly on Tinker's side. But, the outcome said something else as Tinker lost both games to the Cannoneers. Fort Sill 72 Lady Hawks 69 It was a close score all game on Saturday, with Tinker battling it out with one of the conference heavy weights. It was just 32-31 at the half, with Tinker close on the Cannoneer's heels. The lead changed back and forth in the second half with solid play by each team. But, in the end Fort Sill pulled ahead for the win and put Tinker on ice 72-69. Ashonda Williams was the high scorer for the Lady Hawks with 17 points. Fort Sill 59 Lady Hawks 48 It was in the second half of Sunday's game when things went awry for Tinker. Fort Sill led 25-23 at the half, but it was anybody's ballgame to claim. The lead had switched back and forth in the beginning of the second half but with 10 minutes left, Fort Sill switched to a crippling 1-2-1-1 press that effectively shut Tinker down while Fort Sill started what would amount to a 15-point lead. "We panicked," Hopkins said. "They got at least eight or nine points on that press and that put us in the hole, but we finally broke the press and started settling down." Even though they stopped the press, the Lady Hawks were still jittery with Fort Sill carrying a weighty lead and were forcing hurry-up shots to no avail. "We realized once we break the press, there's no shot clock so why are we rushing. And it was kind of disheartening," Hopkins said. Fort Sill outscored Tinker 39-16 in the second half and finally took the game 59-48. Hopkins spoke highly of Fort Sill and said he hopes to see his hoopsters play stronger to the very end, even in the face of defeat. "They are a composed, veteran ball club," Hopkins said of Fort Sill. "They play like veterans, they do things that veterans do. Once you get your veterans to show that type of leadership the rest of the club will come around." Renada Sims was the high scorer for Tinker in Sunday's game with 14 points and Ashonda Williams put up 12. The Lady Hawks travel with the Tinker men's team to Clarendon College in Amarillo, Texas, for a double header this weekend. Clarendon will be a tough squad to beat, as university teams always are, Hopkins said. "From what I understand they press from jump ball to the end," Hopkins said. "We'll have to look out. They run their opponents into the ground."