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Balwanz Leads Valley in Win
VALLEY WETZEL 56, Hundred 50:
Justin Balwanz's 23-point, nine-rebound and eight-assist effort led Valley Wetzel in its 56-50 win over Hundred last night in boys basketball action at the Lumberjacks' gym.
VWHS, now 4-3 on the year, goes on the road tonight to face Beallsville (Ohio).
Jeff Snider led the Hornets with 16 points.
Hundred (50)
Jo.Curry 2 1-2 5; Ja.Curry 1 2-2 4; Pethtel 3 0-0 6; Snider 4 8-11 16; Himmelrick 4 2-2 10; Ray 4 0-0 9; Totals 18 13-17 50.
Valley Wetzel (56)
Shimp 4 0-3 9; Balwanz 7 8-12 23; Nice 1 0-2 2; Bucher 1 2-2 5; Rine 4 0-1 8; D. Cramer 0 2-2 2; Wichterman 0 0-1 0; S. Cramer 1 2-2 4; Highley 0 1-2 1; Anderson 1 0-2 2; Totals 19 15-27 56.
Hundred
12
10
13
15_50
Valley Wetzel
15
9
14
18_56
3-Point Goals:
Ray, Shimp, Balwanz, Bucher.
Updated January 13, 1997
Stumpo Scores 22
To Pace Balanced
Indians by Colts
BRIDGEPORT _ Michael Stumpo fired in a game-high 22 points to lead four Bridgeport double-figure scorers as the Indians downed a scrappy Philip Barbour squad, 76-70, in a Big 10 Conference boys high school basketball contest Thursday night at the BHS gymnasium.
Stumpo, a 5-9 junior shooting guard, netted 8-of-16 shots from the floor, which included three 3-pointers and connected on 3-of-4 at the free-throw line. He also recorded five steals.
"We have been wanting Michael to get more active in the offense and to assert himself a little bit," said Bridgeport coach Gene Randolph. "I think tonight, you saw the true Michael Stumpo. He's finally settled in and we are going to (give) him the reins of our offense.
"I just commend him and his support cast for a job well done. I also can't say enough about the play off the bench from Dustin Hotsinpiller and Sammy Cann. For us to be an excellent team, we have to find those people to filter into our rotation and I think we found those people who can come in and give our starters a blow."
The Indians' (5-2 overall and 3-1 in Big 10 action) supporting cast who followed Stumpo in scoring were Brian Zickefoose with 15 points, Anthony Ziglear with 14 points and a game-high 13 rebounds and Chris Kerr with 13 points.
Josh Yeager, who scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, pumped in 13 first-half points to give the Colts a 38-34 halftime advantage. But, the guests were unable to hold the lead because of a strong third period by the Indians.
BHS used a solid defensive effort in the second half and outscored Philip Barbour 19-11 in the decisive third quarter to take a 53-49 spread into the final stanza. Stumpo hit for eight points, including two treys, in the period.
"Defensively, it got to the point where we had to hook up, reach out and have everyone kick it into gear," remarked Randolph.
Stumpo tallied 15 second-half points for BHS and it was his fast break hoop which gave the Tribe a comfortable nine-point, 66-57, advantage with 4:28 to play.
Bridgeport then had to make free throws down the stretch. Zickefoose and Stumpo shot a combined six-of-six in the final minute to seal the win.
Delbert Mayle and Woodie Cole paced the Colts (2-4 overall and in Big 10 play) with 19 points each, while Mayle collected a team-high 12 rebounds.
"I thought we played real well for three quarters, then they got physical with us in the fourth quarter and that seemed to effect us a little," said PBHS coach Danny Wagner. "I was pleased with our two post players, Delbert Mayle and Josh Yeager."
Philip Barbour (70)
Cole 8 0-0 19; Yeager 7 1-3 17; McDaniel 2 0-0 5; Mayle 9 1-2 19; Barkley 1 0-0 3; Thompson 1 4-4 7; Totals 28 6-9 76.
Bridgeport (76)
Kerr 5 3-4 13; Ziglear 7 0-0 14; Shahady 1 4-6 6; Stumpo 8 3-4 22; Zickefoose 4 7-7 15; Belcastro 0 0-1 0; Northey 0 0-0 0; Hotsinpiller 2 0-0 4; Cann 0 0-0 0; Kuntz 1 0-0 2; Totals 28 17-22 76.
Philip
Barbour
21
17
11
21_70
Bridgeport
21
13
19
23_76
3-Point Goals:
_ Cole 3, Yeager 2, McDaniel, Barkley, Thompson, Stumpo 3.
Updated January 13, 1997
Second-Half Surge
Sends Mountaineers
To Easy Victory
Defense and rebounding win games.
That was the billing for Thursday night's Liberty-Robert C. Byrd showdown and the Mountaineers came out with the upper hand.
Liberty used a solid defensive effort and a 12-2 run at the start of the second half to claim a 68-54 win over the Eagles in the intra-Harrison County and Big 10 Conference contest at the RCB gym.
LHS packed into a 3-2 zone at the beginning of the third quarter and used two Anthony Bellotte 3-pointers to spark the decisive run as the visitors opened up a 16-point lead with 4:59 left in the canto. The Mountaineers built the lead to as many as 20 points in the third before RCB scored the final four points of the quarter.
In the final quarter, the Eagles were unable to mount a rally despite ending the stanza on a 8-2 run when the game was already decided.
"Both teams have that philosophy (defense and rebounding win games)," said Liberty coach Russ Nutt. "Tonight, fortunately I felt our kids did a pretty good job with it and without question, it was a deciding factor of the game.
"There are other things that go into it but those two things are going to be the deciding factor."
The game looked as if it was going to be a blowout as the Mountaineers opened the first quarter with a 14-3 lead. But the hosts, behind the shooting of Donnie Johnson, were able to keep the game close.
Johnson finished with seven points in the opening quarter as LHS took a 19-11 lead.
Bryan Harman and Brian Ross were the offensive catalysts for Liberty as the senior and junior forwards each scored seven markers in the period.
In the second quarter, the pendulum appeared to be swinging in the Eagles' favor as they picked up their defensive intensity and took a brief 25-24 lead with 2:42 to go in the half.
As its defense awakened, RCB's outside-inside game started clicking as Johnson scored seven points, including two treys, while Jon Calvert tossed in five markers from the paint.
But the Mountaineers were able to score the final seven points of the half, finished off by Chad Amodio's putback, to take a 31-25 lead into the lockerroom.
"They wanted this game a lot more than we did and it was evident from the beginning," said RCB coach Brad Underwood. "They outhustled us ... we just kind of stood at both ends of the floor.
"And the team that plays the hardest should win these games and they played much harder than we played. They wanted it more than we wanted it and they won."
The Mountaineers, 3-2 overall and 3-0 in the Big 10, were led by Ross' 19 points while Harman, who sparked the offense in the first half, finished with 18 markers.
Liberty's cat-quick point guard Anthony Bellotte added 14 points, including 11 in the second half, and Guy Curotz chipped in with 10.
Johnson led RCB, 5-3 and 3-1, with a game-high 26 points while Calvert and Marshall Cox muscled their way to 13 and 11 points, respectively.
Liberty returns to action Tuesday when it hosts Grafton. Robert C. Byrd plays next Thursday at home against South Harrison.
Liberty (68)
Bellotte 3 6-7 14; Flanagan 1 3-3 5; Harman 7 2-3 18; Amodio 1 0-0 2; Salfia 0 0-0 0; Ross 6 6-8 19; Curotz 5 0-2 10; Totals 23 17-23 54.
Robert C. Byrd (54)
Johnson 9 4-7 26;
Hoffman 0 0-0 0; Nardelli 0 0-0 0; Calvert 6 1-2 13; K.Cox 0 0-2 0; Lawrence 0 0-1 0; M.Cox 4 3-4 11; Lee 2 0-2 4; Totals 21 8-18 54.
Liberty
19
12
18
19_68
Robert C. Byrd
11
14
8
21_54
3-Point Goals:
Bellotte 2, Harman 2, Ross, Johnson 4.
Updated January 13, 1997
Riffle, Parker Carry Irish
Past South Harrison, 65-53
Josh Riffle converted six-of-10 3-pointers to lead Notre Dame as the Irish upended South Harrison 65-53 last night in boys basketball action at the NDHS gymnasium.
South Harrison jumped out to an early 10-4 lead thanks to Adam Davisson's two 3-pointers, but after a Jeremy Parker lay-up and Riffle's first of six treys, the Irish cut the deficit to 10-9.
The first period ended with the score knotted at 12 and it looked to be a dogfight.
But, Riffle displayed some sharp shooting as he hit three consecutive treys to start the second and the Irish's lead ballooned to 21-12 before the Hawks knew what hit them.
The rest of the first half both teams exchanged baskets but Riffle hit one more three before the break and the Irish held a commanding 35-23 lead going into halftime.
"I thought we started off real sluggish and they came out and played real well. They jumped out to a 10-4 lead and I didn't think it was time to panic but I was concerned and called a timeout and changed defenses," commented Notre Dame head coach Angelo Basile on the Hawks early lead.
"We regained our confidence and made a couple of easy buckets on fast breaks and once we got the lead we started to play our game and never gave up the lead," stated Basile.
South Harrison's Tom Sears ignited the Hawks in the third quarter as he scored nine of his 13 points in the quarter, but with every shot the Hawks were making the Irish would counter with one of their own preventing SH from making any kind of a run.
But, Davisson knocked down a three in the waning seconds of the third and the Irish held only a five-point lead going into the final stanza.
But that was the closest the Hawks got as Jeremy Parker pulled down six of his game-high 12 rebounds and LaDon Garrett hauled in four rebounds in the final period as the Irish dominated in the paint after Sears, the Hawks main rebounder, fouled out of the game.
Down 10 points the Hawks were forced to foul and the Irish went on to hit 10-of-14 free throws to ice game.
Davisson led all scorers on the night as he fired in 23 and had five steals.
The Irish placed four scorers in double digits along with Riffle. Parker had 14 points, John Paul Rieser followed with 11 and Sam Caputo netted 10.
Hawks head coach Robert Shields was happy with his team's performance as he stated, "We played hard just like we've been doing all year long. We just have to cut down on some mental mistakes. We got to get better when the games are close. I'm pleased and hope we can improve in each game."
Basile gave kudos to the scrappy Hawks team.
"South Harrison played a great game. They made some difficult shots. We knew they wouldn't lay down for us. But, I was real pleased with our performance especially in the second half. Every time they made a run, we came up with a big rebound or a big play. Everyone did their part tonight and I was real pleased."
South Harrison (53)
Davisson 8 3-5 23; Sears 4 5-8 13; Jenkins 3 0-2 6; Lawrence 1 0-0 2; Wilson 0 1-2 1; Blair 2 0-0 2; Devericks 2 0-0 4; Totals 20 9-17 53.
Notre Dame (65)
Parker 5 3-4 14; Rieser 1 9-12 11; Riffle 6 0-0 18; Caputo 4 3-4 10; Garrett 1 5-10 7; McIntosh 1 3-5 5; Totals 18 20-31
65.
South Harrison
12
11
20
10_53
Notre Dame
12
23
13
17_65
3-Point Goals:
Davisson 4, Parker, Riffle 6, Caputo 2.
Updated January 13, 1997
Ziglear, Stumpo
Pace Indians' 52-40
Win over S. Harrison
BRIDGEPORT _ Bridgeport received a huge performance from Anthony Ziglear and combined that with solid defense as it downed South Harrison, 52-40, in a Harrison County and Big 10 Conference boys basketball contest Friday night at the BHS gymnasium.
Ziglear, a 6-4 sophomore forward, poured in a game-high 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the floor and 3-of-5 at the foul line. He also grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and blocked three shots.
Indians' coach Gene Randolph, whose team is now 4-1 overall and 2-0 in Big 10 action, had high praise for his talented forward after the contest.
"Anthony works hard every day in practice and tonight, you saw some of what his daily efforts are," commented Randolph. "I think from Anthony's perspective, I don't see him getting anything but better and he was a stabilizing influence in there for us."
The Hawks, now 0-6 overall and 0-2 in Big 10 play, got off to a good start as Jason Wilson hit two 3-pointers for a 6-0 lead in the first minute of the game.
However, Bridgeport responded with a 12-2 run led by Michael Stumpo's two treys for a 12-8 advantage. The Tribe went on to take a 16-11 spread into the second quarter.
Stumpo, who had 10 first half points, quickly added four points on a hoop and two free throws for a nine-point, 20-11, margin with 6:50 left in the half.
The Hawks rallied to within four points at the break, 28-24, behind two 3-pointers by Adam Davisson.
Ziglear began to assert himself in the third period for Bridgeport as he scored eight points to stake the Indians to an 11-point, 41-30, lead.
"We are glad to come out of here with a win," remarked Randolph. "But, we had pretty much control of the game until the midway point of the fourth quarter."
But, the never-say-die Hawks got back into the contest with an 8-0 run to start the fourth quarter and pulled to within three, 41-38, with 3:47 remaining in the game.
Chris Kerr quickly added a follow-up shot and Brian Zickefoose converted four-of-four at the foul line to put the Tribe comfortably ahead at 47-38 with 1:16 to play.
Following Ziglear in scoring for the Indians was Stumpo with 13 points while Kerr added nine and grabbed 10 caroms.
Davisson paced the Hawks with 13 points followed by Wilson with 12.
"I can't fault the kids' effort and hustle," said South Harrison coach Robert Shields. "We are just having some mental breakdowns at critical moments of the game.
"We have to develop some kind of an inside game. We are missing a lot of shots because of it and as long as the kids stay positive, we are going to get someone on one of these nights."
The Indians return to action on Tuesday when they host Robert C. Byrd in a key conference contest. South Harrison visits Lincoln for a league game the same evening.
South Harrison (40)
Davisson 5 0-0 13; Wilson 4 0-0 12; Sears 0 0-2 0; Lawrence 1 0-0 2; Jenkins 3 0-0 6; Devericks 0 1-2 1; Riley 0 1-4 1; Turner 2 0-0 5; Totals 15 2-8 40.
Bridgeport (52)
Kerr 4 1-7 9; Ziglear 8 3-5 19; Shahady 1 0-2 2; Stumpo 4 2-2 13; Zickefoose 0 7-9 7; Northey 0 1-2 1; Kuntz 0 1-2 1; Totals 17 15-29 52.
South
Harrison
11
13
6
10_40
Bridgeport
16
12
13
11_52
3-Point Goals:
_ Davisson 3, Wilson 4, Turner, Stumpo 3.
Updated January 6, 1997
'Cats Blast Cougars
Behind Stellar Play
By Garrett, Henderson
SHINNSTON _ Over a 9:53 span of the second and third quarters, the Grafton Bearcats outscored Lincoln 29-2 to blow open a close game and set the tone for a 74-41 thrashing Friday night.
Jay Garrett and Eli Henderson paced the Bearcats (2-2), as they scored 20 and 18 points, respectively, in the blowout.
Mike Barnes led the Cougars (1-4) with 17.
Both teams traded baskets in the first quarter, as Grafton showed early on that it intended to use its height advantage to get on the board early and often. Lance Marshall knocked down four points in the quarter, while Henderson and Garrett combined for five for the victors.
On the other side of the ball, the Cougars used their pressure diamond defense to confuse the Bearcats into turnovers that they converted into fast-break points. After one period, Grafton led by only two at 13-11, and it appeared to be anyone's game.
Over the next six minutes, neither team seemed ready to pull away. Then, without warning, the Cougars turned ice cold offensively.
Trailing by one at 25-24, Lincoln coach Dennis Hutson could only watch in bewilderment as Grafton reeled off 12 consecutive points to close out the half ahead 37-24.
Henderson caught fire in the run as he nailed seven points in those last two minutes.
The halftime intermission could have lasted 10 days instead of 10 minutes, and the Cougars still wouldn't have been able to get untracked offensively this night. Throughout the next eight minutes, Lincoln scored only once on a Danny Hardesty jump shot as the Bearcats continued their domination by outscoring the Cougars 17-2 in the third quarter to up their lead to 54-26.
Garrett came alive in the quarter as he netted eight of the Bearcats points.
Lincoln coach Dennis Hutson was mystified by his team's inability to score.
"It is hard to believe that we could go that cold offensively," said Hutson. "I thought that our effort was very poor at times tonight. We didn't have five people on the court at one time that hustled together. They killed us down low on the boards, and that is where games are won, in the paint."
The final period introduced the fans to the Grafton bench as the team made wholesale substitutions. The Bearcat lead rose to as many as 34 late in the quarter before finally ending at 33.
Grafton coach Mike Crutchfield gave his assessment of the big run, "They went cold on their shooting, and that led us to some easy opportunities that turned the game around. Eli hit a couple of shots in that stretch where we got off before the half, and we were able to carry that momentum into the second half.
"Right now, we are not looking at wins and losses, but rather are trying to get our team to play better. Tonight was our best effort of the season by far."
Grafton (74)
Kellaway 0 1-2 1; Westfall 1 1-2 3; Bobella 2 2-3 6; B.Henderson 2 0-0 4; Garrett 7 6-6 20; Jones 4 0-1 10; Newbraugh 2 2-5 6; E.Henderson 4 8-9 18; Marshall 3 0-0 6; Totals 25 20-28 74.
Lincoln (41)
Barnes 7 0-0 17; Riley 3 0-0 6; Edwards 2 0-0 5; Lane 0 0-0 0; Hardesty 2 0-2 4; Pravda 1 0-2 2; Ryan 0 0-0 0; Buckhannon 1 2-4 5; Pritt 1 0-0 2; Totals 17 2-8
41.
Grafton
13
24
17
20_74
Lincoln
11
13
2
15_41
3-Point Goals:
Jones 2, Barnes 3, Edwards, Buckhannon.
Updated January 6, 1997
University Topples Lewis County; Valley Wetzel Wins
UNIVERSITY 79, Lewis County 66:
C.J. Frum and Duke Witt each scored 17 points for University as the Hawks downed visiting NCAC foe Lewis County Friday night, 79-66.
The Hawks took a 12-point lead after one period but the Minutemen cut it to 44-40 at the break.
In the second half, the hosts gradually put the game out of reach to claim the 13-point victory.
Mark Byer and Adam Taylor added 13 and 12 points, respectively, for the victors.
Lewis County placed four players in double digits led by Jarrod Ramsburg with 14, followed by Brad Orvik and Joe Mace with 12 each and Jarred Bruffey with 10.
The Minutemen return to action on Tuesday as they visit North Marion for an NCAC contest. University also has a league game that night as it visits Fairmont Senior.
Lewis Co. (66)
Spaur 3 0-0 8; Barilea 1 0-0 3; Ramsburg 5 2-4 14; Bruffey 4 0-0 10; Mace 6 0-0 12; Craig 3 1-6 7; Orvik 6 0-0 12; Totals 28 3-10 66.
University (79)
Whorton 0 2-3 2; Baker 1 3-4 5; Byer 5 2-2 13; Phillips 3 2-5 8; Taylor 4 4-7 12; Frum 7 3-3 17; Druar 2 0-0 5; Witt 8 1-3 17; Totals 30 17-27 79.
Lewis County
14
26
15
11_66
University
26
18
16
19_79
3-Point Goals:
Spaur 2, Barilea, Ramsburg 2, Bruffey 2, Byer, Druar.
VALLEY WETZEL 67, Cameron 44:
Justin Balwanz's team high 24 points paced Valley Wetzel to a 67-44 victory over Cameron in a first round game at the Hundred Invitational Tournament Friday night.
The Lumberjacks (3-1) will next move on to take on the winner of the Elk Garden-Hundred game in the championship contest tonight at 9 p.m.
Sean Hartley led the Dragons with 13 points while Scott Beresford contributed 10 in the losing effort.
Valley Wetzel (67)
Shimp 3 0-0 6; Balwanz 11 1-2 24; Nice 1 1-2 3; Bucher 0 2-2 2; Thorne 2 0-0 4; Rine 4 0-2 8; Yoho 1 0-0 2; Kramer 1 3-6 5; Highley 2 0-0 5; Anderson 4 0-0 8; Totals 29 7-14 67.
Cameron (44)
Tedro 1 2-2 4;
Patrello 0 3-4 3; Bonar 1 0-0 2; S.Hartley 3 7-12 13; Wendt 3 0-0 7; Beresford 5 0-0 10; Cain 0 1-4 1; C.Hartley 1 0-0 2; Yeater 1 0-1 2; Totals 15 13-23 44.
Valley Wetzel
11
13
23
20_67
Cameron
5
9
12
18_44
3-Point Goals:
Balwanz, Highley, Wendt.
HERITAGE CHRISTIAN 61, Emmanuel Christian 49:
Jeremy King scored 24 points and Grant Garber added 15 as homestanding Heritage Christian upended Emmanuel Christian 61-49 last night in boys basketball action.
Travis Crites and J.B. Seay each scored 15 in the loss for EC. Seay also grabbed 11 rebounds and had five steals in the contest.
Emmanuel (49)
Crites 5 5-9 15; Fridley 2 2-3 6; Nicewarner 2 0-0 4; Seay 6 3-8 15; Yeager 2 3-8 7; Schumaker 0 2-4 2; Totals 17 15-32 49.
Heritage (61)
G. Garber 7 1-3 15; Harman 0 2-2 2; King 11 2-3 24; A. Garber 3 0-0 7; Simmons 1 0-0 2; Turner 1 0-0 2; Triplett 0 1-1 1; Cante 2 1-3 5; McDougal 1 1-2 3; Totals 26 8-14 61.
Emmanuel
6
10
14
19_49
Heritage
12
9
20
20_61
3-Point Goals:
A. Garber.
Updated January 6, 1997
Dent, Martino
Pace Irish By
Hundred, 46-38
Notre Dame overcame a sluggish performance to down Hundred 46-38 Thursday night in Class A girls basketball action at the NDHS gym.
Clarice Dent led the Irish in the first quarter as the sophomore scored nine of ND's 11 points to give the hosts an 11-7 lead.
In the second quarter both teams' offenses were unable to convert many opportunities as the teams combined for a total of 11 points in the frame. Still, the Irish were able to go into intermission with an 18-11 lead.
In the second half, both teams' offenses were able to shake off the doldrums and began to score at will.
Notre Dame, 4-2, was led by Angie Martino, who was playing point guard for the injured Toni Kay Oliverio. She was able to take advantage of the Hornets' man-to-man defense and finished the third quarter with eight points as the Irish led 29-20.
But the Irish were not able to put the Hornets away until midway through the final period.
After Hundred's Jill Huggins made a layup to cut the lead to six, 34-28, with 5:46 left in the contest, ND went on a 12-8 run to close out the game.
The Hornets had their chances to cut into the lead late in the game but were unable to take advantage of the Irish's poor foul shooting because of their own poor free throw shooting. Down the stretch NDHS made just 4 of 14 free throws while Hundred was just 2 of 7.
Dent led the Irish with a game-high 23 points including 10 in the final quarter while Martino contributed 15 markers.
Courtney Dennis led the Hornets with 13 points, seven coming in the final quarter. Sierra Huggins added eight points for the visitors.
"We played well enough to win, but against this team I thought we would do a little bit better," said ND coach Steve Gibson. "They (Hundred) are awful young and we had more experience in our guard positions.
"But for one reason or another the girls are not playing at the caliber of basketball that they are capable of. Until we figure that out we are going to be playing a lot of close ballgames."
Notre Dame returns to action on Saturday as it hosts St. Marys at 3 p.m.
Hundred visits Valley Wetzel tonight.
Hundred (38)
Tustin 3 0-2 6; Jones 1 1-2 3; J.Huggins 3 0-5 6; Dennis 5 3-4 13; S.Huggins 3 0-0 8; Allison 1 0-2 2; Pikula 0 0-2 0; Totals 16 4-17 38.
Notre Dame (46)
Dent 10 3-7 23; Martino 7 1-4 15; Me.Ferro 0 1-6 1; Mi.Ferro 2 0-0 4; Vozniak 0 2-2
2; Freemen 0 1-2 1; Totals 19 8-21 46.
Hundred
7
4
9
18_38
Notre Dame
11
7
11
17_46
3-Point Goals:
S.Huggins 2.
Updated January 3, 1997
Strong Third Quarter Carries
Cougars past Hawks, 53-38
SHINNSTON _ Lincoln gained control of a close contest with visiting South Harrison by putting together a strong third quarter to down the Hawks 53-38 and remain unbeaten at 7-0 last night in Big 10 Conference action.
Holding a slim 19-17 lead at the intermission, the Cougars went on an 11-3 run to begin the third period when Tabitha Hutson's jumper gave LHS a 21-17 lead.
After South Harrison's Amber Morrison buried a 3-pointer from the top of the key to bring the Cougar lead to one, Lincoln responded with nine unanswered points to take a 30-20 lead.
The Hawks managed to cut the LHS advantage to eight at 32-24 on Jennifer Young's basket, but the Cougars scored the last nine points of the quarter to give LHS a comfortable 41-24 lead going into the final frame and the hosts were able to hold on and coast the rest of the way to the victory.
"We came out flat and stood around and weren't attacking the basket," said LHS head coach Jeff Osbourn. "That really surprised me, but we were able to pick it up in the second half and we started hitting our shots."
Both teams came out cold with Lincoln holding a slim 9-6 lead after the first canto.
In the second quarter, it appeared that the Cougars might put South Harrison away as LHS built a 16-8 advantage late in the period, but the Hawks' Jennifer Young scored five points including a hoop at the buzzer to round out a 9-3 SHHS run to end the half.
"Offensively, we just couldn't make the shots that we were supposed to make," remarked SHHS head coach Joe Johnson. "They were keying on Amber (Morrison) and Melissa (Dawson) and when that happens, someone else has to step up for us and that didn't happen.
"I thought that we played good defensively, but when your offense isn't working and you get behind it tends to carry over to your defense."
For the Cougars, freshman Teresa Medina led a balanced scoring attack with 13, while Jessica Barron followed with 11.
The Hawks (2-5) were led by Dawson and Young, each with 11, and Morrison's 10 points.
Lincoln is back in action again on Monday when it travels to take on Liberty, while South Harrison hosts Bridgeport on Wednesday.
South Harrison (38)
West 1 2-2 4; Dawson 5 1-5 11; Morrison 4 1-3 10; Amos 1 0-0 2; Young 5 1-2 11; Totals 16 5-12 38.
Lincoln (53)
Medina 5 3-4 13; Luchuck 3 2-4 9; J.Lambert 1 0-0 2; Barron 2 7-9 11; Hutson 2 2-2 6; S.Lambert 2 1-1 5; Pierce 3 1-2 7; Totals 18 16-22 53.
South Harrison
6
11
7
14_38
Lincoln
9
10
22
12_53
3-Point Goals:
Morrison, Luchuck.
Updated January 3, 1997
Lincoln, South Harrison Advance
To Girls Tournament Championship
SHINNSTON _ South Harrison and Lincoln survived their first round games Friday to advance to the championship game of the Lincoln-McDonald's Holiday Tournament last night.
Both teams used spectacular individual play to gain berths in the finals.
In the opening game, South Harrison's Amber Morrison buried 28 points, including two clutch free throws late to secure the Hawks (2-3) a 51-46 victory over Grafton (1-4). In the nightcap, it was Lincoln's Chrissy Luchuck leading the way with a team high 27 points as the Cougars downed Robert C. Byrd 68-49.
The first game was a see-saw battle that saw South Harrison take a seven point lead into the half, only to falter and give up the lead after an 8-0 Bearcat run in the third quarter.
From there, the Amber Morrison show took center stage and the junior forward single-handedly carried the Hawks down the stretch. With her team trailing 46-45 and only 53 seconds remaining, Morrison took a pass in the lane, turned, and as she was getting fouled nailed a short jumper to put the Hawks ahead for good.
After Morrison canned her free throw, the Bearcats had one last chance to tie the score. Tiffany Sayres tried inbounding the ball from the sideline but couldn't find any teammates open. Running close to the 5-second count, she hastily called time out.
Unfortunately for Grafton, it was out of time outs and the Hawks were awarded two technical foul shots that Morrison calmly nailed to put the game away.
Hawks coach Joe Johnson said, "Tonight was a total team effort, and Amber really stepped up big. We look for Melissa Dawson and her to score at least 60 percent of our points, and that is what happened today. If those two can have good shooting nights against Lincoln, then we might be able to keep things close."
On paper, the second game looked like it was going to be a blowout, and through the first quarter and a half, Lincoln made the experts look brilliant.
Down 32-9 with 4:30 remaining in the second quarter, Robert C. Byrd had two options, fold up and get blown out, or fight back. The Eagles chose the latter, and after finally getting their offense untracked, were able to close the gap to 14 points at the half. Only a desperation 3-pointer by Luchuck at the buzzer kept the lead from shrinking to 11.
In the second half the Eagles continued their comeback, trimming the deficit down to five at 41-36 late in the third quarter. That is when the Lincoln machine started rolling again. Behind the brilliant defensive and offensive play of Luchuck, the Cougars (5-0) were able to right themselves and go on a 27-13 run to finally blow out RCB (1-5) by 19.
RCB coach Bill Bennett spoke about the Eagle's comeback, "I was real happy with the way we fought back tonight. We played much better after the first quarter, unfortunately we just dug ourselves too big of a hole to come back from."
Cougar's coach Jeff Osbourn said, "Chrissy had a tremendous game. I told the kids that every night, someone has to step up and tonight it was Chrissy. We are going to have to play some defense against South Harrison and stop their transition game in order to beat them tomorrow night."
Grafton (46)
Shay 6 1-4 13; Sayres 1 1-2 3; Villaranza 2 2-11 6; Bias 3 4-6 10; Maier 4 2-2 10; Sansbury 1 2-10 4; Bolyard 0 0-2 0; Totals 17 12-37 46.
South Harrison
(51)
Bond 0 0-1 0; Dawson 4 1-2 9; Smith 2 0-0 4; Morrison 11 6-11 28; Young 3 3-4 9; Kirk 0 1-2 1; Carroll 0 0-0 0; Totals 20 11-20 51.
Grafton
8
5
18
15_46
South Harrison
9
11
17
14_51
3-Point Goals:
None.
___Robert C. Byrd (49)
Critchfield 1 0-0 2; Veltri 1 0-0 2; Gray 1 0-0 3; Richison 1 1-2 3; Yertzell 5 2-3 16; Stickel 2 0-0 4; Secret 4 2-4 10; Waugaman 4 1-1 9; Totals 19 6-10 49.
Lincoln (68)
Medina 4 1-1 9; Luchuck 11 3-5 27; J. Lambert 2 0-0 4; Barron 2 0-0 4; Hutson 4 2-2 10; S. Lambert 5 2-2 12; Cochran 0 0-0 0; Wentz 1 0-0 2; Pierce 0 0-0 0; Totals 29 8-10 68.
Robert C. Byrd
8
12
16
13_49
Lincoln
23
11
10
24_68
3-Point Goals:
Gray, Yertzell 4, Luchuck 2.
Updated December 30, 1996
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