Third time's the charm: Lady Blackhawks downs Avery in second round of state basketball playoffs
Jamie Shell / (sports@averyjournal.com)
Avery jumped to an early double-digit advantage, only to see
the West Wilkes Lady Blackhawks erase the margin in less than a period to seize a lead that they did
not relinquish, as the Lady Vikings fell by a 60-57 final score.
The Lady Vikings quickly opened a double-digit lead on its home floor behind seven points from senior Megan Tennant and a pair of three-pointers off the bench from sophomore guard Breanna Heaton. Jessica Bumgarner scored five for West to stay close as AHS held an 18-8 advantage after one period.
West continued to struggled against the inside play of Avery's forwards, as Tennant and Burleson combined for 12 points in the period. West's troubles compounded when guard Amber Brock was whistled for both a personal, then technical foul. Momentum was squarely on the Lady Viking bench, as the Big Red build a commanding 38-23 halftime lead.
As the third quarter commenced, it was a case of "different half, different story" as West opened the period with an 8-1 run to quickly cut the deficit to eight. West continued the rally with five points from Bumgarner, a pair of baskets off the bench from Whitney Wood and 11 points from Dancy, including a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe to overtake AHS on the scoreboard for a 23-4 scoring run and 46-42 lead after three quarters.Avery came alive early in the final eight minutes, but West refused to fold, led by its quick and gritty point guard Dancy.
"She was on fire tonight," Lady Vikings head coach Missy Lyons said of the West guard. "We talked about defending her before the game and did a pretty good job on her in the first half. She was feeling confident in the second half and is a great player as a freshman."
Kelsie Clarke, playing with four fouls for a majority of the second half, scored a pair of baskets in the early part of the period to keep AHS within a possession of tying the contest, but West, who managed only three field goals in the final stanza, preserved its lead at the free throw line, where the club did damage in its first-round victory at Highland Tech. The Lady Blackhawks was 10-for-14 from the charity stripe in the quarter, with several shots pressure-packed and converted as part of 11 additional points for Dancy to end with a game-high total of 24 points.
A Burleson basket with 12 seconds to play cut the West lead to 58-57, but a pair of Bumgarner free throws with 1.6 seconds on the clock pushed the lead to three. A desperation half-court shot by Burleson clanged off the iron to allow the No. 10-seeded Lady Blackhawks to survive and advance.
Tennant paced Avery with 19 points playing through foul trouble in her final game in a Lady Viking uniform, with 17 points from Burleson and 11 from Heaton. Clarke added eight points. Darcy's game-high 24 was helped by 13 from Bumgarner, with nine points from Lakyn Rutledge and eight from Wood. West went 22-for-30 from the free throw line in the game, while the Lady Vikings was 17-for-24 at the charity stripe.
Read more about this story in next week's print edition of The AJT.
The Lady Vikings quickly opened a double-digit lead on its home floor behind seven points from senior Megan Tennant and a pair of three-pointers off the bench from sophomore guard Breanna Heaton. Jessica Bumgarner scored five for West to stay close as AHS held an 18-8 advantage after one period.
West continued to struggled against the inside play of Avery's forwards, as Tennant and Burleson combined for 12 points in the period. West's troubles compounded when guard Amber Brock was whistled for both a personal, then technical foul. Momentum was squarely on the Lady Viking bench, as the Big Red build a commanding 38-23 halftime lead.
As the third quarter commenced, it was a case of "different half, different story" as West opened the period with an 8-1 run to quickly cut the deficit to eight. West continued the rally with five points from Bumgarner, a pair of baskets off the bench from Whitney Wood and 11 points from Dancy, including a perfect 6-for-6 from the charity stripe to overtake AHS on the scoreboard for a 23-4 scoring run and 46-42 lead after three quarters.Avery came alive early in the final eight minutes, but West refused to fold, led by its quick and gritty point guard Dancy.
"She was on fire tonight," Lady Vikings head coach Missy Lyons said of the West guard. "We talked about defending her before the game and did a pretty good job on her in the first half. She was feeling confident in the second half and is a great player as a freshman."
Kelsie Clarke, playing with four fouls for a majority of the second half, scored a pair of baskets in the early part of the period to keep AHS within a possession of tying the contest, but West, who managed only three field goals in the final stanza, preserved its lead at the free throw line, where the club did damage in its first-round victory at Highland Tech. The Lady Blackhawks was 10-for-14 from the charity stripe in the quarter, with several shots pressure-packed and converted as part of 11 additional points for Dancy to end with a game-high total of 24 points.
A Burleson basket with 12 seconds to play cut the West lead to 58-57, but a pair of Bumgarner free throws with 1.6 seconds on the clock pushed the lead to three. A desperation half-court shot by Burleson clanged off the iron to allow the No. 10-seeded Lady Blackhawks to survive and advance.
Tennant paced Avery with 19 points playing through foul trouble in her final game in a Lady Viking uniform, with 17 points from Burleson and 11 from Heaton. Clarke added eight points. Darcy's game-high 24 was helped by 13 from Bumgarner, with nine points from Lakyn Rutledge and eight from Wood. West went 22-for-30 from the free throw line in the game, while the Lady Vikings was 17-for-24 at the charity stripe.
Read more about this story in next week's print edition of The AJT.