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Parkersburg, WV
Ritchie County
02 09 15 21 = 47
Parkersburg South
06 17 18 21 = 62
South Scoring: Ali
Morris 13, Taylor Phillips 13, Danielle Floyd 11, Kim Stephens 11, Kara
Longwell 6, Sarah Harvey 3, Asia Greenleaf 2, Jessie Wells 2, Amber
Shreeves 1.
Ritchie Scoring:
Karissa Ezell 13, Courtney Bunner 11, Sam Crouch 10, Kelly Spangler 10,
Chelsea Jones 3.
Junior Varsity:
Parkersburg South 80, Ritchie County 14
Ritchie County
06 00 08 00 = 14
Parkersburg South
18 25 17 20 = 80
South Scoring:
Mary Seagraves 20, Kelsi Halbert 12, Jessie Wells 10, Jessica Moore 9,
Jessica Gilkeson 8, Amber Shreeves 6, Sammy Hicks 5, Sarah Beha 4,
MacKenzie Bourgeois 4, Katelyn Porter 2.
Ritchie Scoring:
Spencer 6, Villers 6, Sellers 2.
By JIM BUTTA,
Parkersburg News & Sentinel
PARKERSBURG—No. 4 Class AA Ritchie County ventured into untested waters
Tuesday night at the Rod Oldham Athletic Center, taking on No. 3 Class
AAA—and defending state girls basketball champion—Parkersburg South.
The results were almost predictable as the bigger, deeper Patriot squad
handed the game Rebels a 15-point, 62-47, setback.
“I just think we were a little bit quicker than they were,” South head
coach Scott Stephens explained. “It must have been hard for them to
simulate the pressure they got from us tonight in practice.”
Pressure that forced 12 turnovers in the first eight minutes alone and
limited the Ritchie Countians to a 1-for-5 showing from the field.
Numbers that should have resulted in a blowout be the end of the opening
frame except for the fact that the Rebels’ pressure attack forced the
Patriots into eight miscues and a 2-for-12 effort from the floor.
“Our girls have just got to realize that they can play with teams bigger
than them,” Rebel head coach Terry Spangler said. “We (South and
Ritchie) are very similar in our approach to the game.”
And, that approach is a simple one—use pressure on defense and score in
transition.
A strategy the red, white and blue utilized to its fullest in the second
quarter, turning a 6-2 first quarter lead into a 13-point, 15-2,
advantage with less than four minutes remaining until the intermission.
Ritchie County, now 12-5 overall, fought back to within 12, 23-11, at
the break, but the damage had been done.
The third quarter saw both offenses show signs of life with South, now
13-2, increasing its lead to 15, 41-26. But that would prove to be just
the beginning.
Entering the game as two of the top offensive programs in the Mid-Ohio
Valley—Ritchie averages 64.1 points per game while the Patriots follow
close behind at 63.2—the final eight minutes of action saw the two
squads combine for 42 points.
“Sometimes so much focus is place on a team’s offense that people forget
about its defense,” added Spangler. “Both teams played very hard on
defense tonight and both offenses suffered until the final quarter.”
Led by junior Karrissa Ezell’s 10 points the Rebels, who play host to
Little Kanawha Conference rival Williamstown on Saturday, pulled to
within 17, 47-30, with 6:30 left in the game. But that would be as close
as the visitors would get until the game’s final score.
Ezell paced four Rebels in double figures with 13. Senior Courtney
Bunner chipped in 11 while Sam Crouch and Kelly Spangler added 10 points
apiece.
Pacing Parkersburg South, which plays host to Winfield at 7:30 p.m. on
Saturday, to the victory was senior Taylor Phillips, who finished with
13 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. Ali Morris also scored 13
points for the defending champs while Danielle Floyd and Kim Stephens
chipped with with 11 points. |
