Parkersburg, WV

Marietta (OH)           12  09  14  20  =  55

Parkersburg South     16  16  11  17  =  60

South Scoring:  Jessica Moore 18, Kelsi Halbert 14, Mary Seagraves 12, Kristiana Hunt 7, Hannah Maston 4, Sammy Hicks 3, Allison Parsons 2.

Marietta Scoring:  LeAnne 28, Lamb 11, Grosel 8, Brown 2, Schramm 2, Schramm 2, Summers 2.

South Statistics:  Rebounds, 31 (Hicks, Seagraves 7);  Assists, 17 (Halbert 9);  Steals, 6 (Beha 2);  Blocks, 9 (Moore 5, Greenleaf 3);  Turnovers, 17;  Field Goal Shooting, 23-45 (51%);  3-Point Field Goal Shooting, 3-10 (30%);  Free-Throw Shooting, 10-15 (67%);  Total Fouls, 20.

Marietta Statistics:  Turnovers, 18; Field Goal Shooting, 17-50 (34%);  3-Point Field Goal Shooting, 4-13 (31%);  Free-Throw Shooting, 11-15 (73%).

South girls evade Tigers, 60-55

By Steve Hemmelgarn, News & Sentinel

PARKERSBURG - After building a double-digit lead throughout most of the second and third quarters, host Parkersburg South let it all slip away in the fourth quarter behind a Marietta rally keyed by LeAnne Ross until Kelsi Halbert gunned in two treys at crucial junctures in the final 3:04 to enable the Patriots to post a 60-55 win over the Tigers Wednesday night at the Rod Oldham Athletic Center.

The victory boosted South's season mark to 2-1 going into Saturday's 1:30 p.m. game at Zanesville while the loss was the first in four games for Marietta, which also plays next at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Portsmouth.

The Patriots' point-production was paced by Jessica Moore with 18, Halbert with 14, Mary Seagraves with 12 and Kristiana Hunt with seven. The Tigers, meanwhile, got a 28-point performance from Ross, followed by 11 from Paige Lamb and eight from Maegan Grosel.

Seagraves' nine points in the opening period propelled South on top 16-12 and to start the second stanza, Moore, Halbert and Hannah Matson scored in succession as the Patriots pulled ahead 22-12 at the 4:09 mark.

That gap increased to 16 (32-16) late in the first half by consecutive hoops by Halbert, Hunt and Allison Parsons before a deuce by Grosel and a trey by Ross in the last 10 seconds cut the Tigers' gap to just 11 (32-21) at intermission.

South maintained an eight to 12-point lead in the third quarter. But in the first minute of the fourth, the advantage shrunk to six twice before a personal 11-2 run by Ross led Marietta into a 48-47 lead with 5:15 to play. And when Betsy Schramm hit a short baseline jumper at 4:14, it was the Tigers on top 50-47.

But Halbert canned a trey at 3:04 for a 52-all tie and, after the lead changed hands several times, drained another 3-ball with 46.4 seconds remaining to lift the Patriots ahead for good at 57-55. Then she ended the scoring and Marietta's hopes with 2.3 seconds left on two free throws.

"They just kept chipping away at us; it was that kind of game," said South head coach Scott Stephens.

Of course, Stephens sort of knew that Ross would get on a run, "and when that happens, she's hard to get stopped."

But he added it was "good to see how our kids responded to the pressure of losing the lead and going down, but staying in the game, keeping our heads, coming back and being able to pull it out."

JV score: Marietta 48, Parkersburg South 33

Marietta Scoring: Paige Grosel 3, Kristen Hill 5, Lusia Barton 2, Erica Dawson 23, Kaitlyn Cozzens 3, Lexi Walsh 2, Amanda Styer 2, Betsy Schramm 8.

South Scoring: Allison Parsons 4, Mary Lewis 2, Carmen Cutlip 3, Kayla Dixon 12, Katelyn Hamilton 2, Taylor Gribble 2, Genna Trippett 4, Jenna McAtee 4.

Gazette Round-Up

SOUTH 60, MARIETTA 55: Homestanding Parkersburg South took a 32-21 lead into halftime and held on for a win over Marietta, Ohio. Kelsi Halbert led the Patriots (2-1) with 14 points followed by Mary Seagraves with 12. LeAnn Ross scored 28 points for Marietta (3-1).