Harrison hangs on to play again

CLASS 4A HARRISON 45, DE QUEEN 42

MAGNOLIA — Style points didn’t matter to Harrison Coach Doug Young in his team’s first Class 4A state tournament game Friday night.

The Lady Goblins held on for a 45-42 quarterfinal victory Friday over De Queen at Panther Arena.

“We’re just glad to be able to play tomorrow,” Young said.

Harrison (26-5) will face Berryville at 6 p.m. today in the semifinals.

Senior Brylie Parker led Harrison, which shot 15 of 30 from the floor, with 14 points. Junior Marion Groberg added 10.

De Queen was led by senior Ashley Dykes, who had 16 points, and junior Josie Burke added 11. The Lady Leopards (28-4) shot 13 of 26.

Parker made two free throws with 8.4 seconds left to play to extend Harrison’s lead to 45-42.

The Lady Leopards had an opportunity to tie the game. But senior Tatyana Tramble’s three-point attempt from the left wing did not fall and the Lady Goblins escaped.

“We had a chance,” De Queen Coach Paul Dean said. “That’s all we can ask for. We did what we had to do to have a chance.”

Harrison jumped out to an 11-0 lead and led 19-5 at the end of the first quarter. De Queen responded, outscoring Harrison 9-2 in the second quarter to pull within 21-14.

The Lady Leopards cut the lead to 26-25 with 53.9 seconds left in the third quarter on Dykes’ two free throws. Then Harrison scored the final five points of the quarter, including a three-pointer by junior Caroline Cecil to extend the Lady Goblins’ lead to 31-25 entering the fourth quarter.

Harrison had not played since its Class 4A North Region championship victory over Berryville on Feb. 23. That was a concern for Young entering Friday’s game.

“We had been off for a whole week,” Young said. “You never know what to expect.

“But in the third quarter, we got things rolling.”

BERRYVILLE 61, PULASKI ACADEMY 50

The Lady Bobcats (30-4) used an 18-2 run to defeat the Lady Bruins (19-10).

Kelcee Hopper scored 16 points to lead Berryville. Lexy Anderson finished with 14 points.

Mattie Hatcher had a game-high 23 points for Pulaski Academy.

Berryville trailed 40-36 entering the fourth quarter. Mattie Hatcher’s three-pointer extended Pulaski Academy’s lead to 45-41 with 6:00 remaining, but it was all Lady Bobcats from that point.

Lilli Compton knocked down a three-pointer to start Berryville’s run. Compton then hit two free throws with 3:26 remaining to give the Lady Bobcats a 46-45 lead. Hopper’s three-point play stretched Berryville’s advantage to 5547 with 1:21 left to play.