CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Williamstown girls basketball coach Danny Bunch never lost faith in Yellowjackets’ junior Gracie Montgomery, insisting a breakout performance was in the works.
Montgomery couldn’t have picked a better time for one, making five three-pointers and scoring a game-high 17 points Wednesday to help the Yellowjackets prevail past Philip Barbour 53-51 in a Class AA quarterfinal at the Charleston Coliseum.
“I’ve been waiting on that from Gracie all season. She battled some sickness, rolled her ankle a couple times and we were never quite able to get her in shape all season,” Bunch said. “We’re finally getting Gracie to the point of what I expected out of her when the season started.”
Montgomery made 3-of-5 shots (all three-pointers) in the first quarter and was the only WHS (20-3) player to score. Otherwise, the Yellowjackets missed six shots, but managed to lead, 9-7.
“Being open and letting it rip,” Montgomery said of what led to her success.
The sixth-seeded Colts (16-9) lost starter Finley Carpenter to injury in the opening frame and struggled to find an answer for Montgomery directly after her hot start. She would make two more threes in a second quarter that also featured seven points from teammate Arissa Burt, allowing the Yellowjackets to lead 26-17 at halftime.
“In the games that I had seen them play, she had never shot like that,” Colts’ coach Rick Mouser said. “That put us behind the 8-ball and we had to battle back. It played a big role.”
PBHS post presence Izzy Knotts had eight points at the break, but the Colts struggled to find offensive production otherwise throughout a half in which they made 7-of-23 shots.
After managing six first-half paint points, Philip Barbour scored 10 in the third period. Tatem Jeffries accounted for eight points in that quarter after finishing with three, and it was clear the Colts made a more concerted effort to find a player who shot 4 for 8 in that quarter.
Still, Williamstown was efficient itself throughout the third, making 6-of-11 field-goal attempts to maintain a nine-point lead and enter the fourth in front, 41-32.
“As far as grit, determination and will, there’s never a question of it with these girls,” Mouser said.
Yellowjacket guard Quinn Bunch scored the first four points of the final frame on a floater and two free throws, leaving her team with a 13-point lead at that point.
The Colts then came charging back starting with an Emmah Carter jumper that marked the start of a 7-0 spurt. Knotts accounted for the last five of those points, including a turnaround jumper that had her team to within six with 5:30 remaining.
The Williamstown lead was 7 at the 2-minute mark, before the complexion of the ending changed when Jeffries made two free throws and scored from close range 5 seconds later off a Williamstown turnover.
Bunch made two free throws with 38 seconds left to move the lead back out to six, and the advantage was seven before the Colts’ Olivia Wilmoth made a trey with 11.9 seconds left.
After Bunch made one free throw with inside 10 seconds remaining, Wilmoth connected again from long range to make it a two-point game with inside 1 second left.
Williamstown then elected for a longer inbound pass toward half court that was intercepted, but the Colts couldn’t get off a potential winning three before time expired.
“The motto here is to survive and advance,” coach Bunch said, “and tonight that’s what we had to do.”
Williamstown finished 8 for 12 on threes among its 17 for 40 shooting. Bunch scored 16 points and made 9-of-12 free throws.
“I’m the ball handler, so most of the time I’m going to be the one sent to the free-throw line,” she said. “I try to walk up there, not think about anything and shoot them like I practice them.”
Burt added 11 points to make it three double-figure scorers in the win.
“A solid win. Didn’t expect us to play perfect,” coach Bunch said. “We haven’t played a lot of games in the last few weeks. It was a gritty win. Things got tough. We didn’t get rattled late. Kudos to Philip Barbour. They’re a solid, athletic team. They played very hard and had a lot to do with us not playing our best.”
With the victory, Williamstown advances to face No. 3 Wheeling Central in a semifinal.
Jeffries led PB with 17 points and eight rebounds, while Knotts added 15 points and nine boards. Wilmoth scored 13, all but four of which came after halftime.
“We knew it was going to be a rough game from watching them on film. We told them we have to play through that stuff and we can’t control what’s called and what’s not,” Mouser said. “For the most part, we did that. Every time they punched us, we punched back. We were down 13 and a had at least a chance to win the game.”