Gallery by Ashley Honaker
Lindside – James Monroe girls basketball head coach Angela Mann did not shy away from competition during the regular season.
The first-year head coach was convinced that “playing up” would pay dividends in the postseason.
So far, Mann’s philosophy has been right on the money.
Coming off of a lopsided win over Mount View to open Class A Region 3, Section 1 play Tuesday, the Mavericks ran roughshod over River View 80-52 Thursday night in the sectional championship game.
“I think it has contributed (to our postseason) success wholeheartedly,” Mann said about the tough schedule. “Our whole schedule was playing up. We played quad (A’s), triple (A’s) and double (A’s). They invited us up to that Summersville tournament. We had three losses that were so good for us. We would have loved to have come out with a win, but they were one and five point losses. We have learned how to play against different types of teams and they challenged us. That has made all of the difference.”
Although James Monroe never trailed in the contest, the home squad only led by two points midway through the first quarter.
It was the calm before the storm.
Led by Mya Dunlap and Maggie Boroski, the Mavericks started scoring quickly and scoring in bunches.
Following a hoop from Aleigha Hill, Dunlap scored eight straight for a 20-9 lead with just under three minutes remaining in the quarter.
A bucket from Kaylee Blankenship for River View trimmed the lead back inside double digits, but it was last time that River View was that close the remainder of the game.
A driving score from Dunlap beat the buzzer for a 22-11 lead after the first eight minutes.
“There is no question that James Monroe is good and even to a certain extent they are better than us,” River View head coach Gehrig Justice said. “I thought we got zero calls in the first half. I talked to the officials and they got smart (with me). The third play of the game (Blankenship) got busted. The echo was everywhere. No call. Then we get a touch foul down here. That changed the dynamic (of the game). They push us all the way up the sideline and no call. Then we get another touch foul down here. Our kids got frustrated. We are young and that is what happens.”
The second period belonged to the home team who turned defense into offense scoring 19 in a row over the first six minutes of the quarter.
“We switched up our defense,” Mann said. “We have been putting in some other options to take advantage of our defenders. We definitely feel like our defense leads to our offense.”
“We have been preaching that all season,” Mann continued. “That is the way I grew up playing. If I give them a little bit of leeway and say get ’em, they really go. It has really shown in the last two games. They have been willing to put in every bit of the effort and dig deep.”
A score from Dunlap started the run and was followed by six straight points from Boroski. Another score from Dunlap and four free-throws from Boroski preceded a conventional 3-point play by Hill for a 39-11 lead.
Boroski’s steal and ensuing layup capped the run before it was snapped by a 3-ball from Blankenship.
Blankenship’s shot was the only score of the quarter for the Raiders.
“They are so long and lean. I love it. They are so quick and it is why we implemented that new defense coming out,” Mann said about Boroski and Dunlap. “They are unstoppable and then you have Mary Beth (Meadows) who runs around and (attacks) from behind. She can strip that ball. (Mary Beth) controls everything that goes on out there. I can’t have her off floor because she tells everybody what to do.
Two more buckets from Boroski and a 3-pointer from Meadows gave James Monroe a 49-14 lead at halftime.
“Our mindset tonight was to just play our game. If we play our game we are going to win,” Boroski said. “With me and Mya running the top, we are both really long and always there for the steal. It works really well for us and we play really well together.”
Both teams advanced to the region co-final with James Monroe hosting the loser between Greenbrier West and Meadow Bridge which will be decided Friday night in Charmco.
“We are undefeated at home,” Mann said about playing the regional game in Lindside. “They love their home gym. The road has been challenging sometimes, but here they always seem to pull it out. It is a huge advantage.”
River View will be the road to play the winner from Section 2. Both regional co-final clashes will be played Tuesday night.
“For us all year has been a process of growing up. Greenbrier West is pretty good,” Justice said. “We are pretty good and we are battle tested. We played good teams. We have played Meadow Bridge twice, but we have to come in ready to play. We feel like we have a chance.”
RV: 11 3 17 21 – 58
JM: 22 27 18 13 – 80
River View
Chasity Kennedy 14, Kaylee Blankenship 16, Baleigh Auville 3, Brooke Fuller 2, Abigail Pruitt 9, Kaci Hatfield 8.
James Monroe
Mary Beth Meadows 5, Maggie Boroski 28, Abby Mathis 11, Aleigha Hill 9, Mya Dunlap 19, Aleigha Hopkins 2, Jordan Roberts 3, Lilly St. Clair 3.
