Warriors' Basketball Defeat Hemingford

DALTON-Leyton's Warrior Basketball teams hosted Hemingford on December 15, and the Lady Warriors had no trouble keeping their record unblemished, while the boys' team pulled out a big win to even their season record at 3-and-3.

In the girls game, the Lady Warriors started hot and built a big lead early on. By halftime, the contest was decided, with junior Zaili Benish sinking three pointers and senior Claire Watchorn dominating under the boards. The Lady Bobcats were able to score a bit late in the game when the outcome was already settled as Leyton Head Coach Jed Benish was able to get his bench players plenty of time playing in the last half of the contest.

The boys contest was a closer match, but Leyton was able gain a lead and keep the Bobcats at a distance with another strong performance by senior Jonathan Kruse. The Warriors ended the contest with a 48-to-34 victory.

Junior Zaili Benish hit a milestone against Potter-Dix last week, notching her 1,000th career point in the contest. Asked about her achievement, she said "I practice shooting year round. I love getting the shooting machine out and shooting hundreds of shots each time I get into the gym. Each sport I participate in means a lot to me, but basketball is a sport that I believe can better you in other sports as well."

When asked about who helped her be able to be such an effective scorer, she said, "My dad has always been the most help to me when it comes to shooting. He's always there to coach me. Not only did he contribute to me and this accomplishment, but our assistant coach Ryan Fortune always has the right words to motivate me and the rest of the team. I am more than grateful to be a part of such an amazing team. I wouldn't have scored 1000 points without them. They are the best group of girls to get to play with! Our home crowd is always the best too. They made that game really special for me. It was already so special to get to celebrate something like this with an amazing team, but it made it even better to see the posters in the crowd and the people I am closest to celebrating with me!"

She has almost two entire seasons left to play, and was asked if 2000 points was a goal she could hit. She said, "As far as the 2000 points goes, the stats will be awfully close. However, I really am just focused on winning games with my team and hopefully making it back in Lincoln."

Leyton was scheduled to travel to Arthur County for a matchup with the Wolves on Tuesday, and then the teams have some time off until they travel to Perkins County on December 30.