Lady Titans claim 1A-II substate title

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Sports

March 4, 2013 - 12:00 AM

The Lady Titans had their eye on the prize from the beginning Saturday night against Elk Valley High, and never let up.
The Southern Coffey County High girls took the Class 1A, Division II substate championship with a commanding 44-27 win over the Lions. The win sends them to the state tournament in Hays, which starts Wednesday afternoon.
Titan Chenae Newkirk jumpstarted a 15-0 run to start the game. Breanna Isch, Martyna Hegwald and Sarah Webb contributed to the powerful beginning. A 3-pointer from Myranda Hegwald with just over three minutes in the first quarter prompted the Lions to take a time-out. Savannah Cannon hit a foul shot quickly after the break to end the run.
“The first quarter, shooting the ball as well as we did set the tone for the game,” SCC coach Jeff True said.
The Lady Titans led 17-3 going into the second quarter.
The second quarter action slowed, due to a heavy amount of fouls made by Elk Valley — SCC was in the double bonus just one minute into the quarter. Webb and Miranda Alumbaugh each capitalized on the opportunity with two free throws apiece. Kalyn Deal hit two field goals to seal the first half at 26-8 SCC.
Alumbaugh hit a long jumper to start the second half action. She followed the shot with two free throws on a foul.
Dakota Corle and Cannon each had 2s for Elk Valley midway through the quarter, their only field goals until the fourth. SCC had a 36-13 advantage going into the finale.
The scoring deficit was buffered by the Lions with a 14-point performance in the quarter. Madison Ashenfelter hit a 2-pointer, followed by foul shots from Faith Ferguson and Corle. The Titans responded with inside shots from Isch and Alumbaugh.
Coach True brought in the substitute players with one minute remaining in the contest. Amber Emmons drove to the basket and hit a layup with eight seconds remaining. The crowd was on its feet, cheering the victory as regulation expired.
“I think we played with more intensity and focus than our game the other night against Crest,” True said. “But the important thing is that our shots went in.”
Webb led the Lady Titans with 10 points, followed by Martyna Hegwald with eight and Alumbaugh with seven.
He said his guards did a good job of moving the ball around the court and finding opportunities for their teammates to gets open shots. The Lady Titans will need that focus again this week in the state tournament.
“We are going to play as hard as we can and have fun,” he said.
Most importantly, the coach said he wants his girls to enjoy and appreciate the rare opportunity.
“I want them to enjoy the opportunity and the atmosphere in Hays,” he said. “Any time you can go to state it’s cool, I’m happy for the girls.”
SCC will play the top-seed, undefeated Ingalls High School at 3 p.m. Wednesday at Gross Memorial Coliseum on the campus of Fort Hays State University.
Elk Valley (3-5-5-14—27)
SCC (17-9-10-8—44)
Elk Valley (FG/3pt-FT-F-TP): Packett 1/1-0-3-5, Cannon 1-1-5-3, Ashenfelter 1-0-3-2, Schnug 0-2-2-2, Beougher 2-0-5-4, Ferguson 0-1-4-1, Corle 3-4-4-10. TOTALS: 8/1-8-26-27.
SCC (FG/3pt-FT-F-TP): Lyda 0-0-1-0, Newkirk 1-0-4-2, Deal 2-0-2-4, Emmons 1-0-0-2, Ma. Hegwald 4-0-1-8, My. Hegwald 0/1-0-1-3, Webb 2-6-2-10, Brite 0-0-1-0, Alumbaugh 3-1-4-7, Isch 3-2-5-8. TOTALS: 16/1-9-22-44.

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