It Took Overtime but Dorchester Academy Wins SCISA Class AA Basketball Title Over Cross School 39-37
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By Billy G. Baker
Publisher
Sumter--There were many twists and turns in the SCISA AA girl’s state championship basketball game, contested at the Sumter Civic Center on February 28, between Dorchester Academy and the Cross School and it took overtime for the Raiders to earn a hard-fought 39-37 win.
There were more lead changes, fouls, missed free throws, uplifting three pointers swishing the net then there are potholes on most rural roads in Dorchester County. Honesty, this state title game was a knock-down drag-out that left fans of both schools emotionally drained when it was finally over.
DA head coach Callie McClure, a former HSSR Player of the Year, went she celebrated her senior season at DA with a state basketball title, was asked if there was more stress in winning a title as a Coach, or more as a player? “It is definitely more stressful winning a state title as a head coach," said Coach McClure after the game. "Man, this game was exciting. I knew it was going to be close. I knew it was going to come down to ball protection. I knew it was going to come down to who was hot at the end. I knew it was going to come down to the officiating.
"It was a real physical game; I am not kidding," said Coach McClure "I am just thankful it is over and that we won. I did not expect an overtime game. I am very proud of my team today for competing and pulling out a win they will remember forever."
DA led 12-8 after the first quarter when junior guard Rylee Weathers began the game hitting consecutive three-point shots to put the Raiders up 6-0 early.
By the half, DA was clinging to an 18-16 lead.
Cross scored the first bucket of the third quarter to tie the game at 18 as senior guard Ryan Mayers scored on a drive into the lane. Then with 6:15 left in the third, junior Lexann Maldonado nailed a three pointer from downtown Sumter to give the Stingrays their first lead of the game 21-18. Neither team held more than a three point lead the rest of the game.
The final period began with DA 22-21. Emery McClure extended the lead to 24-21 on a lay-up for the first score of the final period. However, the Cross School went up 29-26 with 2:33 left when Mayers scored on a short jumper. Weathers next hit a clutch three point shot from the top of the key to tie the game at 29 with 1:16 remaining in regulation.
Then with 1:07 left, Mayers was fouled making a basket from short range and she added a free throw and Cross led 32-29 with 46.3 seconds left in regulation. Then Palmer Kizer of DA nailed a three-pointer from the elbow with 58 seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 32. Neither team could score over the next 58 seconds, so they entered a four-minute overtime period.
With 2:23 left in OT, Lexann Maldonado put up a skyhook shot in the lane that found the net to put Cross School up 34-32. Then with 1:54. remaining, Madison Downey of DA tied the game on a baseline shot at 34, With 49.3 seconds left, McClure went to the line and made both free throws to put the Raiders up 36-34 at that point. After getting the ball off a turnover McClure was fouled with 29.5 seconds left, and she made one of two free throws to give the Raiders a 37-34 lead.
Then with 19.1 seconds left, Lexxan Maldonado scored a putback shot in close to cut the deficit to 37-36. Down one, the Cross School fouled Kizer with 14.4 seconds left. Calm and relaxed (are you kidding?) Kizer made both free throws to put the Raiders up 39-36 and the Sumter Civis Center was loud and proud with happy Raider fans. Then with 1.5 seconds left in the game Mayers was fouled, missed the first shot, and then it looked like she was trying to miss her second shot on purpose, possibly hoping for a quick kick-out three-point attempt. However, to her surprise the ball hit the rim, balanced for a moment, and then went through the net to make the final score 30-37 and that is how the game ended.
The Cross School head coach is first-year coach Jill Brunori who signed a basketball scholarship to Wake Forest after earning HSSR all-state honors as a star guard on the Hilton Head Prep team in the 2011 and 2012 seasons. She played all four years for the Demon Deacons and was a four-year member of the ACC Academic honor roll.
After the game she told the HSSR, “We got into foul trouble early, and that has been a consistent theme all season, so we went to a 2-1-2 to start the second half to protect some of our players,” said Coach Brunori. “On offense, some of our set plays were not getting positive results in the first half so we put in some screens to help get better ball movement with a focus of setting up Ryan Mayers for some high percentage shots.
“We came into game feeling the key things we needed to do were to attack the rim, press them to hopefully get some steals and quick transition buckets, and we also wanted to get them in four trouble,” said Coach Brunori. “We had played them twice before during the season and we knew stopping number five (Weathers) and number 10 (McClure) from having easy lanes to the basket was critical. Our zone defense helped with that also.”
Coach Brunori took time to salute only two seniors on the team who helped the Stingrays finish 22-8 this season. “First of all, Ryan Mayers has had a tremendous career and she will be missed,” said Coach Brunori. “Our other senior, Reyannah Maldonado has been a solid player for us as well and she played great defense today before fouling out.”
For the game DA was led in scoring by McClure and Weathers and McClure with 14 and 13 points, respectively. Kizer was next with six points, while Alysaa Groomes, Rylee Matthews, and Madison Downey each contributed 2 points.
The Cross School was led by Mayers with 16 points, followed by Lexann Maldonado who had six points Reyannah Maldonado with four points, along with Savannah Hollings and Sydney Hollings with six and four points, respectively.
The SCISA AA All-Girls tournament team consisted of Kizer, Weathers and McClure of DA, Sadie Bruyere of Laurens Academy, along with Mayers, and Hollings of Cross Schools.
