Chalk held up in the Class 2, District 11 semifinals Tuesday night, as Crane and Spokane both raced out to huge first-quarter leads. The Lady Pirates rolled over Marionville 69-34 in the early game, and Spokane downed Marion C. Early 75-53 in the nightcap.
(1) Crane Lady Pirates vs. (4) Marionville Lady Comets
Crane's super seniors have finally reached the downhill portion of their storied high school careers.
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With the regular season behind them, it's win-or-go-home time … for the fourth time.
While the deep waters lie beyond the district round, Crane head coach Jeremy Mullins isn't taking anything for granted.
"We're looking for concentration and focus down the stretch," Mullins said. "It's hard, and the girls know it's hard, but that's what we're striving for. Do what you know how to do, do it well, and do it to the best of your ability."
For the first quarter, at least, Mullins got all he wanted and more.
Crane's smothering defensive pressure set a frantic tempo right from the opening tip, and Marionville simply couldn't keep pace.
The Lady Pirates forced ten turnovers in the first quarter, swarmed the offensive boards and ran the transition game to perfection. By the time the smoke cleared, Crane had posted a 32-6 run and was in complete control of the ball game.
While Marionville struggled to move the ball through the Crane blitzkrieg early on, the Lady Comets did find some success in the second period once the full-court pressure was pulled back.
Midway through the quarter, sophomore Tori LaSalle found herself wide open on the right wing and connected with a Marionville 3-pointer.
Crane wasted little time killing the Lady Comets' rally, something the Lady Pirates have excelled at all season long. Lexi Vaught raced the ball down the court and found fellow senior Shelby Roder alone at the top of the key.
Roder never hesitated, answering Marionville's score with a long three of her own.
"I just knew from playing with these girls … we know each other," Roder said. "I think Lexie was the one that passed it to me. She knew I was going to shoot it, I knew I was going to shoot it … I'm pretty sure everyone knew. I just put it up in the air."
Justeen Mahan scored a game-high 18 points for the Lady Pirates and was joined in double figures by Kylee Moore's 17 and Madison Fulp's 13.
Mullins talked about the pros and cons of runaway games versus close matchups as his team moves through the postseason.
"Some people go either way on that," Mullins said. "I'm worried about us, as far as what we're going to do. As long as we do what we're capable of, I'm fine with it, no matter who we're playing."
Crane – 69, Marionville – 34
Crane 32 14 19 4 — 69 Marionville 6 11 10 7 — 34
Crane Scoring: Kylee Moore – 17, Madison Fulp – 13, Justeen Mahan – 18, Lexie Vaught – 9, Shelby Roder – 6, Olivia Doto – 4, Madison Hicks – 2
Marionville Scoring: Abbie Hopkins – 14, Kymbra Kirby – 6, Tamara McMilla – 5, Whitney Floyd – 4, Tori LaSalle – 3, Julie Neveln – 2
(2) Spokane Lady Owls vs. (3) Marion C. Early Lady Panthers
Just as Crane did an hour earlier, Spokane utilized an aggressive defensive scheme to seize control early and roll past its semi-final opponent.
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The Lady Owls frantic zone movement on the perimeter and attacking drives to the basket caused early problems for Marion C. Early on both ends of the court.
MCE senior standout Kaityln Painter's 6 points in the quarter represented the only points for the Lady Panthers, while center Casey Cossins found herself in early foul trouble trying to protect the paint.
Spokane's 20-6 first quarter run was enough to gain control of the lead, thanks in part to Rachelle McMurray. The 5'10" junior had her way on the interior, scoring 8 of her 14 points in the opening frame.
Leading 37-20 at the half, the Lady Owls got another spark, this time from Casey Wallace.
The sophomore guard opened up the third quarter with 13 of her game high 20 points in just over three minutes of play.
"I had a really slow start," Wallace said. "But, I felt like my team brought me up, saying 'you can do this' and that's what started it from there, because I had confidence in myself after that. We just moved the ball and got open shots in the third quarter, which really helped me and the whole team."
Wallace was joined in double figures by three other Lady Owls on the evening. Shasta Turnbough scored 16 points, McMurray notched 14 and Meghan Robertson added 12 in a balanced scoring attack.
MCE was finally able to make adjustments in the second half and trade baskets with the Lady Owls; however, Painter and company were unable to cut into the deficit and sustain a rally.
Spokane head coach Doug Hepler talked about maintaining the pressure on the Lady Panther guards and limiting Painter's touches inside.
"We understood what their strengths were," Hepler said. "We really wanted to focus on number 23 and where she was at. The Painter girl, she's a fantastic player. When she was inside, we wanted to put enough pressure on their guards so they wouldn't be able to see her and try to limit her looks because, quite frankly, when the girl can score 44 in one game and 32 in another, she's just flat-out a good scorer. We knew going in we'd have to take away their number one option."
Spokane (19-6) next gets a shot at Crane (25-1) in the District 11 final. After falling 71-38 to the Lady Pirates earlier in the season, Spokane also gets an opportunity for redemption in Thursday's rematch.
Spokane – 75, Marion C. Early – 53
Spokane 20 17 25 13 — 75 MCE 6 14 19 14 — 53
Spokane Scoring: Casey Wallace – 20, Shasta Turnbough – 16, Rachelle McMurray – 14, Meghan Robertson – 12, Kaylee Amritage – 6, Taylor Riott – 5, Sabrina Lator – 2
MCE Scoring: Kaitlyn Painter – 18, Tabitha Francka – 13, Michaela Presley – 10, Casey Cossins – 6, Abby Painter – 6
