Lady Hawks take two of three in Region play
Play Wednesday in State Tourney
Heath Neal’s Blackhawk girls basketball qualified for this week’s 4A State Basketball Tournament by besting a good Morrilton team in the elimination game 50-41, then taking the third seed playoff game from the Ozark Hillbillies 51-27. A short-handed Hawk team lost to the state’s No. 1 ranked Farmington Cardinals in the North Region semifinals.
The Hawks were to enter state play at 4 p.m. Wednesday against Mena Bearcats, the fourth seed from the South Region. The winner of the Pea Ridge/Mena game will then take on the Batesville Pioneers, the winners of the East Region and the No. 2 ranked team in the state at 4 p.m. Thursday, with all games being held at Farmington High School.
Game summaries: Third-place game Pea Ridge 51 Ozark 27
Pea Ridge made short work of the 4A-4 District Champ Lady ’Billies, getting out to a narrow 10-7 lead after one quarter, then pounding their opponents 19-6 in the second period to zoom out to a 29-13 lead and they were never headed.
Forward Blakelee Winn, less than 12 hours removed from leading the Pea Ridge track squad to their third straight state title with 39 track points, was the big catalyst, dropping in 12 first half points to lead the charge. Reserve Hayley West used her 3-point acumen to nail three shots from long distance for 9 points. Aidan Dayberry added a trey of her own along with two accurate free throws, with Allisa Short converted two from the charity stripe and Ravin Cawthon racked up the Hawks’ sixth trey of the half.
Whatever faint hopes the Ozark fans may have harbored entering the third quarter were dashed when the Hawks kept the heat on, outscoring the ’Billies 17-9 to put the game away, leading 46-22 with one period left. Six Hawks scored in the rally with Winn and Cawthon scoring two buckets, long with West’s fourth trey and a goal from Lauren Wright. Cawthon and Dayberry each tossed in a free shot with Josey Goldberg converting two of her own.
The Hawks got two free throws — one each from Samantha Yeagar and Dayberry — along with two solo goals from Winn and Sydney Spears. The Hawks outscored the ’Billies 6-5 in the final quarter for the final 51-27 victory.
Winn led the scoring with 18, while West had 12, Cawthon 8, Dayberry 7, Short 2, Spears 2 and Goldberg 2.
Semifinals Pea Ridge 33 Farmington 54
With their leading scorer not available, the Hawks had their hands full with 4A state No. 1-ranked Farmington in semifinal action. Having lost their three previous match ups with the Cardinals, the Hawks fell behind 19-9 after one period and they could not get over the hump to catch the Redbirds.
Ravin Cawthon led the first quarter scoring for Pea Ridge with 3 points with Allisa Short, Aidan Dayberry and Josey Goldberg each flinging in solo shots.
The Hawks slowed the Cards down somewhat in the second period, limiting them to 13 points and the Hawks scored more, coming up with 10. However, with the state top-ranked team leading 32-19 at the break, a second half comeback looked unlikely.
The third quarter was a low scoring affair with the Cards adding a bit to their lead, outscoring the Hawks 6-5 to emerge with a 38-24 lead. A trey by Short and a regular goal by Dayberry was all the offense the Hawks could generate.
Both sides rolled a bit in the final period with three Hawks scoring 9 total. The Cardinals still managed to put in 14 to leave the final score at 54-33. Sydney Spears came off the bench to score two baskets, with Hayley West dropping a trey and Goldberg scoring a regular goal.
Cawthon led the scoring with 8, Spears scored 6, Dayberry 5, Goldberg 4, West 3, Short 2 and Wright 2.
The Hawks may have one final shot at payback if they can get past their first two state opponents. They are in the upper bracket with Farmington and if both teams take care of business, they could meet for a fifth time this season. It would be in the state semifinals, with the Hawks already playing Farmington in the district and the region semifinals.
Fifth time a charm?
First round Pea Ridge 50 Morrilton 41
It looked for a time that the Hawks could face early elimination, trailing Morrilton 17-7 after one period in the North Region first round. With the loser having their season ended, the Hawks got into gear in the second period, outscoring the Devil Dogs 16-7 to climb to within 1 at the break, trailing 24-23.
Both teams were tight on defense in the third quarter as the Hawks limited the Dogs to just 3 points in the period. The Blackhawks’ 7 points in the quarter were enough impetus to charge ahead and lead 30-27 headed into the final quarter.
It was off to the races in the last quarter. Both teams scored but 10 total points in the third period. They would explode for 34 total points in the fourth. Fortunately, the Hawks got the better of it, outpacing Morrilton 20-14 to earn the final 50-41 victory and extend their season.