Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Lady Cardinals Fall To Parkview
FARMINGTON GIRLS LOSE IN STATE SEMIFINAL
FARMINGTON — Freshman Makenna Vanzant scored 14 points in the first 12:25 of the game, sparking Farmington to a 22-18 lead as the teams traded runs, but Little Rock Parkview adjusted.
Parkview held Vanzant to 5 second-half points as they ended Farmington’s season one game short of the state finals. Each opponent Farmington faced during the 2017 State 5A girls basketball tournament at Magnolia last week scored 55 points, but the third time was not charmed. Farmington won the first two games, 60-55, over Batesville and 58-55 against Hot Springs, before Little Rock Parkview eliminated the Lady Cardinals, 55-47, from the tournament Saturday.
“She (Parkview coach Lahoma Howard) rotated two or three different people trying to guard her,” said Farmington coach Brad Johnson. “They dropped some
help as the game wore on and we adjusted to that. As the game wore on, I felt like we still got really good shots. I thought they were going in, they just rimmed out.”
In their first season in Class 5A, Parkview got a monkey off their back in earning their first appearance in a state championship since 2014. Parkview (28-3) had lost in the Class 6A semifinals the previous two seasons, against Siloam Springs in 2015 and Russellville in 2016. Senior Morgan Brady led the way with 16 points as the Lady Patriots got past Farmington, looking to make their first Class 5A state finals.
The Farmington Lady Cardinals finished with a 24-7 record. Johnson has guided the Lady Cardinals to three state semifinal appearances since 2011-2012 with a State Runner-up finish in 2012 in 4A.
The leading scorers on this year’s team are a freshman and sophomore. There are eight sophomores on the squad and more than one freshman with some moved up to varsity for the post-season.
“I thought we played as good as any team there,” Johnson said.
“I’m unbelievably proud of the way our kids performed the last few weeks of the season. Their effort, their enthusiasm for the game has been unparalleled. This group was a little different from a youth standpoint, from an experience standpoint. Our senior class has been there, but there are 14 kids on this roster, who have never been in that type of environment.
“They’ve never been on that type of stage.”
“You would have thought they were just grizzled veterans. The stage never got too big, the lights never got too bright. Every run is special for different reasons, but this one is so unique on so many different levels for me.”
Sophomore Madisyn Pense opened the scoring with a 3-pointer and Vanzant added an old- fashioned 3-point play giving Farmington an early 7-1 lead, which they upped to 10-4 before Parkview rallied with a 7-0 run of their own to move in front, 11-10.
The score was deadlocked at 12-all at the end of the first quarter.
Parkview stretched the run out to 15-1 over a 4:25 span of the first and second quarters, taking a 16-12 lead 25 seconds into the second period. Mikayla Alexander had 5 points for the Lady Patriots early.
The Lady Cardinals countered as Vanzant scored six points in a Farmington 10-2 run. Her 14th point of the contest initiated a Parkview timeout with the Lady Cardinals leading by four, at 22-18.
The tide of the game turned over the last 4: 25 of the second quarter with Parkview tightening up their defense and finishing the first half on an 11-1 run. A Vanzant free throw was the only point Farmington had during the run.
Meanwhile, Parkview’s Brady, who had 10 first-half points, scored the last six of the second quarter to send the Lady Patriots into the lockers with a 29-23 halftime lead.
Parkview opened the third quarter on a 5-1 run to push their lead out to 10. Parkview led 43-33 at the end of the third quarter. Farmington closed out the game on a 14-8 run during the final 6:37 of their season, but couldn’t make up a 14-point deficit after Brady scored to give Parkview a 47-33 lead 1:23 into the fourth.
Kania Lasker scored 13 points and Jekalen Jones added eight for Parkview.
Vanzant had a game-high 20 points and Pense added seven for the Lady Cardinals.