CALIFORNIA - The No. 7 Lady Hornets stayed close but couldn't overtake the No. 6 Lady Panthers in the consolation semifinals of the 25th-annual California Tournament late Wednesday night.
Fulton trailed 6-4 after one quarter and 13-11 at halftime. Centralia carried a 23-19 lead into the fourth quarter and clinched the win by outscoring the Lady Hornets 14-9 over the final 8 minutes.
Sophomore forward Carly Fisher logged eight points and six rebounds for Fulton (2-10), which has lost nine in a row. Senior forward Haden Trowbridge added six points and 10 rebounds, while sophomore guard Olivia Gowin contributed five points and nine rebounds.
"We were much more aggressive to the basket," Lady Hornets head coach TJ Quick said. "We were able to be in attack mode and put (the Lady Panthers) on their heels a little bit.
"I liked that our fight was back and we looked like we were more comfortable on the court."
Kyra Dickerson topped Centralia with a game-high 11 points and Claire Hunter was next with 10.
Weather permitting, Fulton is scheduled to play Rock Bridge's junior varsity - the eighth seed - for seventh place at 4:30 p.m. today. The Lady Bruins were edged by Mexico 50-46 in the other consolation semifinal Wednesday night.