Gallery by Tina Laney
Fairlea – The fact that the basketball found its way into the hands of Katlyn Carson in the waning seconds Saturday night seemed appropriate.
The North Marion standout had been a problem in the paint all night for Greenbrier East.
With the game on the line, the 5-foor-10 senior worked her way free on the baseline and converted her biggest shot of the night for a thrilling 75-74 win over the Spartans in Fairlea.
“We dug a hole there and had to battle back. We made some big plays down the stretch and hit some shots. Fortunately we got one to fall there at the end,” North Marion head coach Mike Parrish said. “(Katlyn) played really well for us tonight. She was getting on the block and finishing for us, so it was good for her to hit the game winner.”
Had the game been a boxing match, it likely would have been stopped several times on both sides.
One team hit the other with what appeared to be a knockout blow, only to have the opponent get up off the canvas throwing haymakers.
The visitors made the initial move with an 8-0 run in the first quarter to break open a tie game and led by 10 with 3:47 left in the first half.
However, eight straight points from the Spartans made it a two-point game heading to halftime.
The fireworks came fast and furious in the final 16 minutes.
Five in a row from East to open the second half gave the Spartans their first lead of the contest.
The lead was five with 3:38 to play in the quarter when North Marion responded. Carson scored her eighth point of the frame to spark a 7-0 spurt for a 49-47 lead.
Cadence Stewart’s drive and dish found Brooke Clark free for an open 3-pointer to bounce the lead back in favor of the Spartans.
A score at the rim on an in-bounds play to Daisha Summers gave East a 53-49 lead before the next Huskies explosion, again led by the East nemesis on the night.
Back-to-back scores by Carson were followed by baskets from Savannah Walls and Kennedy Beaty who got behind the defense for a layup.
Trailing by three points, the Spartans needed a boost and got it from Aubrey Glover.
Davis first cut the lead to one with a floater before Glover followed with a corner 3. Summers then gave East a four-point lead with a straight-line drive to the rim.
Beaty answered with a triple for the Huskies, only to see Glover drill another long ball. After being fouled on her next attempted 3-ball, the senior guard made all three attempts.
“She can really shoot it. That is all there is too it,” Greenbrier East head coach and current W.Va. Governor Jim Justice said. “She went to the foul line there and boom, boom, boom, she made all three shots.”
Two free throws from Taylor Boswell gave the home team a nine-point lead with 2:20 to play.
North Marion was down, but it was far from out.
Playing without starting point guard Allie Dunford who was unavailable Saturday and Caroline Dotson who was injured, the Spartans saw the lead disappear at a rapid pace.
Four straight turnovers trying to get the ball in play sent the Huskies on a 11-0 run for a 73-71 lead with 51 seconds to play.
“We flew around there. We had some times earlier where we weren’t really getting pressure and we were backing off,” Parrish said. “When we decided to get a little emotional and get up and guard a little bit, we forced some turnovers to get us back into it.”
The Spartans could not score the equalizer on the next trip, but on the ensuing possession for North Marion, Davis intercepted a pass near mid-court. She then went hard to the basket and converted the old school three-point play to put East back on top 74-73 with 25 ticks left on the clock.
North Marion failed to convert initially on its final possession, but when East didn’t to secure the rebound, Carson got her chance for the game winner.
East was out of timeouts and could not get the ball down the floor for a scoring attempt at the end of the game.
“Of course it stings for the kids. We were up nine and we miss a layup and we don’t get a rebound down there at the end. Then we throw the ball away four or five times,” Justice said. “We panicked a little bit. It’s just one of those things. We were playing against a really good team. (North Marion) has incredible pressure and with two ball handlers out, it makes it tough. I was really delighted that we handled the pressure as well as we handled it tonight.”
Emma Freels added 16 points for the Huskies, while Beaty had 13 and Olivia Toland scored nine.
“We had to make some plays. They stayed with it and got fired up there at the end,” Parrish said. “I told them when you play with emotion like that, you will have a chance.”
Greenbrier East had four players finish in double-digits led by Summers with 18 and Davis with 15. Stewart scored 13 and Glover had 12 points.
NM: 18 17 14 26 – 75
GE: 12 21 18 23 – 74
North Marion
Katlyn Carson 25, Olivia Toland 9, Emma Freels 16, Savannah Walls 5, Kennedy Beaty 13, Addie Elliott 4, Brooke Markley 3.
Greenbrier East
Cadence Stewart 13, Brooke Davis 15, Daisha Summers 18, Layla Pence 12, Aubrey Glover 12, Marley Patterson 3, Taylor Boswell 7.
3-pointers – NM: 2 (Freels, Beaty); GE: 8 (Stewart 2, Davis, Glover 3, Patterson, Boswell).
