CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Hannah Tothe’s 3-pointer with seven seconds carried Logan to a stunning 52-49 upset of top-seeded Spring Valley in the Class AAA semifinals.
Sophomore Shayna Gore scored 17 points, but it was Tothe’s basket that made the difference for Logan (17-9), which lost twice to Spring Valley previously this season and squandered a 13-point second-half lead Friday.
The Lady Wolves (23-4), who trailed by 34-21 at the half, pulled even at 47 when point guard Sarah Kelly fed Brooke Heck for a layup with 1:35 left. The tandem hooked up again with 51 seconds remaining as Kelly’s 60-foot baseball pass led to another Heck lay-in that put Spring Valley ahead 49-47, its first lead of the game.
Gore answered with a baseline runner with 40 seconds left, and Logan regained possession when Monica Mitchell’s steal in the lane led to a jumpball. As Logan inbounded with 23 seconds left, Wildcats coach Kevin Gertz eschewed a timeout and let his top scorer Gore set up the final play.
She wound up attracting a double-team and passing to Tothe on the right wing, where the senior had an open look.
“As soon as it left her hand, I knew it was going in,” Gertz said.
Tothe, who struggled through eight second-half turnovers during Spring Valley’s comeback, drilled the jumper to finish 4-of-6 from 3-point range with 13 points.
“I knew they had to double Shayna because no one person on their team can stop her,” Tothe said. “So I was wide open, and I feel pretty confident when it comes down to the wire.”
Gertz lauded Tothe for redeeming herself with the winning basket, “especially since I had ripped her about 30 seconds earlier.”
Spring Valley’s Kelly rushed downcourt, but her errant 3-point attempt came after the buzzer.
Heck scored 20 points and Madison Morris contributed 15 points, 11 rebounds and five steals for Spring Valley, which out-rebounded Logan 45-32 and held a 32-18 scoring edge in the paint.
Mitchell delivered 12 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks for Logan, which will face the winner of Parkersburg South and Morgantown in Saturday’s championship.
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Boothe Davis
Great job Kevin, Brian, Danielle, Shayna, Monica, both Hannahs and all the Lady Wildcats!
Win one more...!
March 8, 2013 at 7:25 pm | Report comment