CHARLESTON W.Va. — No. 1 St. Joseph used one of its patented runs in the second quarter to claim its fifth consecutive Class A state title, routing third-seeded St. Marys 73-32 on Saturday.
“We wanted to make a statement all week to show how hard we worked and how talented we are,” St. Joseph coach Shannon Lewis said. “It was nice to finally be able to celebrate in the fourth quarter, and not have to worry about making free throws down the stretch.”
The Irish (25-1) led 13-10 early before closing the half on a 29-5 run to take a 36-15 halftime lead.
“We all came to the realization we wanted to let people know who was going to win state,” junior guard Mychal Johnson said. “Once we realized that, there was no stopping us.”
Griffin Dempsey led the Irish (25-1) with 26 points, including a record-setting 7-of-15 from 3-point range. Griffin broke the tournament single-game marks for made 3-pointers (six) and 3-point attempts (13).
Dempsey said of her records: “That’s cool, I had no idea until now.”
Mychal Johnson recorded her second triple-double in three games with 12 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists.
“She’s a stat sheet stuffer who likes to set people up,” Lewis said of Mychal Johnson. “She does that every night so I wasn’t surprised to hear that.”
Asia Petitte put in 18 points to control down low for the Irish, who shot 44 percent from the field.
St. Marys (25-2) was paced by Audra Clark’s double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds, on just 4-of-13 shooting. Clark had averaged 21 points in her first two games of the tournament. The Irish’s pressure defense held Lady Devils to just 25 percent shooting.
“I’m pretty sure they were triple-teaming me,” Clark said. “it was just one of those night where (my shots) weren’t falling.”
This marks the third time in St. Joseph’s five-year run that it has defeated St. Marys in the final. The teams met previously with the Irish winning 58-44 in 2010 and 56-49 in 2011.
“Let’s be real — there are three Division I guards on that team,” St. Marys coach Howard Meeks said. “I know when we leave here, everybody will know that St. Marys stood for something.”
The Class A All-Tournament team included:
Griffin Dempsey, St. Joseph
Amber Evans, Tucker County
Audra Clark, St. Marys
Mychal Johnson, St. Joseph
Colleen McCormick, Wheeling Central
Kendra Walker, St. Marys
Emily Bucon, Wheeling Central
Mychelle Johnson, St. Joseph
— CJ Ricker