Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Spartans dominate 4th quarter
Salem scores 20 unanswered points in the last period to down Lord Botetourt.
Photos by ERIC BRADY The Roanoke Times
Ashlie Caldwell (left) of Lord Botetourt and Carlye Garst go after a loose ball in the final minutes of play during the Lady Terriers Christmas Classic at William Byrd High School on Tuesday. Salem won 49-40 and remains undefeated.
Brittany Mattox (left) of William Byrd goes up for two while being defended by Jordan Merrill of Staunton River.
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Lord Botetourt's girls basketball team played well enough for three quarters that coach Chuck Pound must have thought the scoreboard was stuck on 38.
Leading 38-26 over Salem with the final seconds of period three winding down, Pound could only watch the rest of the game in wonder. The Spartans scored 20 unanswered points en route to a 49-40 win in Tuesday's third game of the Lady Terriers Christmas Classic played at William Byrd's gym.
The victory improved Salem's season record to 7-0 and allowed the Spartans to play for the tournament championship tonight against Staunton River, also 7-0. The Golden Eagles slipped past Byrd 37-33 in Tuesday's nightcap.
Salem employed a swarming zone trap press and rode that horse to the win. Botetourt (3-5) got off just seven shots in the fourth quarter (making one) and missed the front end of three 1-and-1 free-throw opportunities.
"We've got a lot of talent on this team," said Spartans coach DeWayne Harrell, who has seen his team rally from a third-quarter double-digit deficit on another occasion (against William Byrd) this season. "They're beginning to realize that when they play together they can be a much better team."
Pound was not taking his team's fast start for granted. "We knew what we were up against," he said, referring to Salem's 19-point victory over the Cavaliers earlier this year. "They're so athletic and quick. I was real proud of the way our team played in the first half."
Botetourt shot better than 50 percent in the first two periods (11-of-21) while holding Salem to 22.6 percent shooting.
"Their defense had us riled up at the beginning," Harrell said. "Plus we had won a lopsided game the night before."
They beat Northside 72-29.
During Salem's 20-0 second-half run, the Spartans got two 3-pointers apiece from Alexius Patterson and Bre Kawa. Patterson finished with 17 points to lead the Spartans while Ataijah Taylor added eight.
"They made some great adjustments," Pound said, "and they took advantage of our youth and inexperience."
Botetourt's Hannah Ward managed a layup in the game's final seconds to end her team's scoreless drought after 7 ½ minutes.
SALEM (7-0)
Patterson 6 3-8 17, Payne 2 0-0 4, Kawa 2 0-0 6, Richardson 0 4-4 4, Belcher 2 0-0 5, Poindexter 2 0-1 4, Garst 0 1-2 1, Taylor 3 2-5 8, Clowser 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 10-20 49.
LORD BOTETOURT (3-5)
Farmer 1 1-2 3, Tyree 1 0-0 2, Ward 4 0-1 8, Lewis 6 0-1 12, Lyle 2 3-4 7, Caldwell 1 0-0 3, VanRavestein 0 0-0 0, Wampler 2 0-1 5. Totals 17 4-9 40.
Salem 10 8 11 20 49
Lord Botetourt 13 13 12 2 40
3-point goals Salem 5 (Patterson 2, Kawa 2, Belcher), Lord Botetourt 2 (Caldwell, Wampler). Total fouls Salem 15, Lord Botetourt 20. Fouled out Lewis, Farmer.
Staunton River squeaks past William Byrd
Staunton River took the lead for good in the final minute of the game, hitting several free throws after William Byrd turnovers.
Jordan Merrill led Staunton River with 14 points. Sammi Webster scored 19 points for the Terriers.
STAUNTON RIVER (7-0)
J. Salyer 6, B. Robinson 5, L. Robinson 6, Mayhew 1, Merrill 14, A. Salyer 5.
WILLIAM BYRD (3-5)
Hanna 2, Mattox 7, Rhodes 6, Webster 19.
Staunton River 8 10 9 10--37
William Byrd 12 7 10 4--33
3-point-goals -- Staunton River 2 (L. Robinson 1, Merrill 1); William Byrd 1 (Mattox 1).
Northside presses on
Northside used an effective press to force turnovers and garner the win against Heritage in the William Byrd tournament.
Morgan Allen led the Vikings with 23 points.
HERITAGE
Jackson 7, Christina Phelps 14, Dee Williams 11, T. Williams 2, Hamlette 3, Bryant 5, Paige 5.
NORTHSIDE
Aishia Wiley 12, Thomas 3, Morgan Allen 23, Holliday 4, Kurtz 8, White 4.
Heritage 15 6 14 12--47
Northside 19 13 8 14--54
3-point-goals -- Heritage (Jackson, Bryant 1) Northside (Allen 3, Kurtz 2).
