HERMANN — The Lady Bearcats started off their run in the Montgomery County Tournament on a high note Monday, Dec. 2, taking down the Wellsville-Middletown Lady Tigers in a 71-20 victory.

Hermann claimed their first win of the season in a rout of their first-round opponents Monday evening, sending them to the winners’ bracket and showing why they are the No. 2 seed in the eight-team tournament.

The Lady Bearcats’ play on both ends of the court put them in control of the game straight from the tip-off, particularly on defense where they held the Lady Tigers scoreless over the first couple of minutes and forced them to take a timeout after they fell behind Hermann 13-2 less than halfway through the first quarter.

Strong defense under the net, balls poked loose, and multiple steals led Hermann to keep Wellsville-Middletown on the back foot and unable to push back on their scoring, helping them to take a firm 21-2 lead by the end of the first.

Their offense received a boost from some effective three-point shooting in the first quarter, something that would continue to benefit the Lady Bearcats throughout the game despite going through a few stretches of cold shooting.

Their offense hummed along in the second quarter despite seeing fewer threes go in and their defense held the Lady Tigers to just two more baskets, but with some free throws they had managed to break 10 points by the end of the half, Hermann up 38-10.

Having already scored nearly four times as many points as Wellsville-Middletown, the Lady Bearcats saw more of the same success in the second half as they had in the first.

They outscored the Lady Tigers 19-6 in the third quarter and then 14-4 in the fourth to wrap up their first-round win and advance to the winners’ bracket in the tournament.

On offense, Hermann was led by Karigan Lane who went 6-9 from the field – including going 4-5 from three point range – for 17 points and three assists as part of an all-around strong performance for the senior guard. She also led her team in rebounds with five and in steals with three.

Ava Hughes also had a good night offensively with 16 points after shooting 7-11 with two threes. Hughes also had five assists, a team leading number she shared with Kealie Lane against the Lady Tigers, and the only two blocks Hermann recorded.

Additionally, Kimber Hale and Kealie Lane had the most efficient games in terms of shooting with Hale going 4-5 including 2-2 on three-point attempts for 10 points and Kealie making three of her four shots for six points.

As a team, the Lady Bearcats shot a combined 55.8 percent from the field and 52.6 percent from three-point range, making 30 of their 71 points on the three-pointer.

They only went to the free throw line twice, making one free throw in three attempts.

With the win, Hermann moves on to play host Montgomery County in the semifinals today Wednesday, Dec. 4, at 7:30 p.m. in the high school gym.

No. 3 seeded Montgomery County defeated No. 6 Fulton 42-32 in Monday night’s games.

If the Lady Bearcats defeat Montgomery County they will move on to the championship game Saturday, Dec. 7, at 4:30 p.m. and play the winner of the No. 4 Mexico - No. 1 Clopton game. If they lose, they will play the loser of the Mexico-Clopton game in the third-place game on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.