By Russell Frye For the EnquirerSpecial to the Enquirer

The Priceville Lady Bulldogs traveled to Trinity Tuesday night to face a county rival, the West Morgan Lady Rebels, who the Lady Bulldogs defeated 54-18 earlier this season

The Lady Bulldogs entered the game as the No. 1 team in class 4A – a spot they have held since the first poll of the year came out in early December.

West Morgan started the game off by hitting a three-pointer to take a 3-0 lead – the only time the Rebels would hold the lead in the game. The Lady Bulldogs outscored the Lady Rebels 21-2 to finish out the quarter. Kathleen Wheeler scored seven points, and Jenna Walker added six points by hitting two three-pointers to lead Priceville in the first quarter to a 21-5 lead.

After combining for 13 points in the first, the Wheeler/Walker combo put up 14 points to lead the Lady Bulldogs in the second quarter. The Lady Bulldog defense held West Morgan to four points, outscoring the home team 22-4. Priceville led the game 43-9 at halftime.

All 15 players who were suited up for the Lady Bulldogs saw action during the first half as well as significant time in the second half.

With the starters sitting for much of the second half, the bench players would outscore West Morgan 17-10 after halftime. Tia Lambert and Taylor Dean led the Priceville reserves in scoring with six points apiece. Abigail Garrison and Brianna Marquette added five points each while Zoey Benson, playing in just her second varsity game, had two pts.

The real impressive not of the night, however, was perhaps that every player contributed something to the stat line. Nine players scored points, 13 players had rebounds, nine players assisted on scoring plays and 10 players had steals.

The Lady Bulldogs had three players score in double figures on the evening. They were led by Wheeler, who had 15 points, four rebounds, three assists and four steals. Walker added 12 points, two rebounds, five assists and five steals. Skyler Benson had 11 points, three rebounds, six assists and four steals. Olivia Duran added two points and four rebounds.

The Lady Rebels were led by Morgan Mosley with six points.

The Lady Bulldogs improved to 17-4 on the season and 5-0 in area play. They will host the Lady Falcons of Saint John Paul II Friday night in their final regular season area contest.

With the Tuesday night win, they are assured of hosting the area tournament Feb. 6 and 8.

Career milestones for the Lady Bulldogs

Two Lady Bulldogs experienced career milestones during the game.

Walker, sophomore point guard, reached the 500 career assists mark tonight on her final assist of the game. She is ranked No. 26 in career assists in the state of Alabama. If she reaches her average of 7.6 assists per game the rest of the season, she will head into her junior year inside the top 20 in career assists.

“Reaching 500 career assists as a sophomore is a tremendous accomplishment,” said Coach Terri Nelson. “When you find a player like Jenna, who can see her teammates, set up her teammates and get them the ball, it is truly special. Most players like to score the points, but she thrives on making a great pass.”

Wheeler, senior forward and Samford signee, reached 1,850 points for her career as she hit a three-pointer in the first quarter. She has 1,858 points and has a chance to eclipse the 2,000-point mark before finishing her career. She broke the school record of 1,503 points, held by Pressley Darling, during their third game of the year versus Cold Springs.