Final rally lifts Winchester Thurston to 55-50 win
Joel Brewton
West Greene蘑菇视频 Madison Lampe (21) and Kylie Simms (32) share an emotional hug following Tuesday蘑菇视频 WPIAL Class A semifinal playoff loss to Winchester Thurston at West Allegheny High School.
West Greene蘑菇视频 McKenna Lampe (14) dribbles past Winchester Thurston蘑菇视频 Ayanna Townsend (22) during their WPIAL Class A semifinal playoff game last season.
Joel Brewton
Joel Brewton
Joel Brewton Joel Brewton West Greene蘑菇视频 Kaitlyn Rizor (10) is pursued by Winchester Thurston蘑菇视频 Ayanna Townsend (22) as she works the ball down the court during Tuesday蘑菇视频 WPIAL Class A semifinal playoff game at West Allegheny High School.
IMPERIAL 鈥� There were plenty of runs and momentum shifts in Tuesday蘑菇视频 WPIAL Class A girls basketball semifinal game that pitted West Greene against top-seeded Winchester Thurston.
Unfortunately for the fourth-seeded Lady Pioneers, Winchester Thurston grabbed the final run, an 8-3 rally, to end the contest and pull out a 55-50 victory Tuesday night at West Allegheny High School.
Despite trailing by as many as 13 points to start the second quarter, the Lady Pioneers didn鈥檛 hang their heads and kept battling against a taller and more athletic squad.
The Lady Pioneers (19-5) were outscored 18-7 in the opening eight minutes, but held a 43-37 scoring advantage the rest of the way.
鈥淲e never put our heads down,鈥� West Greene coach Jordan Watson said. 鈥淭he heart and the effort was there. I鈥檓 so proud of them for that. You take away the bad start, we beat them. We had to take advantage of this moment because even though we are young, you never know when you鈥檒l be back in this position. We are never happy to lose, but I love our girls鈥� fight tonight.鈥�
McKenna and Madison Lampe led West Greene with 20 and 19 points, respectively. Brianna Goodwin scored five points off the bench, while Kaitlyn Rizor and Marissa Rode accounted for 3 points apiece.
Potential Division I recruits Gia Thorpe and Ayanna Townsend scored 52 of WT蘑菇视频 55 points in the win. Thorpe collected 29 points, while Townsend tallied 23 points and 20 rebounds.
鈥淲e knew this was going to be a tight game and West Greene is the best team we have seen all year,鈥� Winchester Thurston coach Monica Williams said. 鈥淕ia and Ayanna were huge. Everyone is trying to stop them and they are a tough match-up for teams. We had to keep our composure against their press. We knew this would be a lot closer than the last time we played (on Jan. 20, a 58-42 win).鈥�
The Lady Bears (20-1) advance to the title game on Friday at the Petersen Events Center against second-seed Cornell at 3 p.m.
After Winchester Thurston scored four of the five points to open the fourth quarter, the Lady Pioneers collected five quick points, courtesy of West Greene蘑菇视频 lone 3-pointer in the game by Madison Lampe and two clutch free throws by Rode.
The Lady Bears once again regrouped and scored the next three points, only to have West Greene knot things up at 47-47 after a mid-range jumper by Madison Lampe at the 3:09 mark.
An inside hoop by Townsend and an old-fashioned three-point play by Thorpe turned the tide for Winchester Thurston, as the Lady Bears hit enough of their free throws down the stretch and were then able to stymie West Greene enough for a narrow five-point win.
鈥淭horpe is probably the best player I have seen at the high school level,鈥� Watson said.
鈥淪he is very shifty. We try to face guard her with our press, but she kept on getting the ball and getting to the rim. We were trying to pack it in on defense and take away the inside. We wanted them to be a jump shooting team and force other players to make shots.鈥�
WT got things started off with its press and size, scoring the opening four points and building leads of 11-2, 16-4 and 18-7.
After a quick basket by the Lady Bears to start the second quarter, West Greene rattled off a 10-2 run to cut the deficit to 22-17.
WT countered with three points, but once again the Lady Pioneers stuck with the No. 1 seed with a 9-0 spurt. The run was capped by a free throw from Madison Lampe, which gave West Greene its first lead of the night, 26-25, with two minutes left before halftime.
The Lady Pioneers trailed 31-27 at halftime after WT grabbed six of the final seven points of the period. Madison Lampe registered 11 points in the quarter.
Trailing 36-29 a couple of minutes into the third period, West Greene responded with 10 unanswered points and took a 39-36 after a pair of foul shots by McKenna Lampe.
Just like in the second quarter, the Lady Bears had a late push to end a period and scored the final four points of the third to retake the lead at 40-39 at the end of three.
鈥淲est Greene fought and they came to play tonight,鈥� Williams said. 鈥淭hey are the quickest team I have seen this year. They have some feisty, young guards. They gave us a heck of a game. They never stop and they didn鈥檛 have any let-up. I鈥檓 happy to get to the finals with our group.鈥�
Both teams had around the same number of turnovers and rebounds, while both squads were effective at the foul line. West Greene shot 19-of-29 from the stripe, while WT made 12-of-22.
West Greene will play either the District 9 runner-up or the District 5 champion in the first round of the PIAA playoffs on Saturday, March 11, with a time and site to be determined.
鈥淭he state tournament is new territory for us (the first trip ever to the PIAAs in school history),鈥� Watson said. 鈥淲e have to regroup and refocus for states. We are going to take tomorrow and Friday off, and then prepare with a full week of practice. We know our style, and no matter who we play, we want to play to our strengths. We are very excited for states.鈥�