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By Dana Harding
A third-quarter burst helped No. 2 Strafford break open a tight game in Wednesday’s Pink & White quarterfinal, downing No. 7 West Plains 60-46.
Following a pair of first-half rallies to keep the game close, the Lady Zizzers opened the second half with a 6-2 run to yet again cut into Strafford’s lead.
Up 28-25 with five minutes left in the quarter, the Lady Indians turned to phenom Hayley Frank.
Just as she has all season, the 6’1” sophomore responded.
Frank poured in 13 of her game-high 26 points in the third, including a trio of 3-pointers.
The all-state forward, regarded as one of the best players in the Ozarks, was quick to attribute her success to teammates and opportunities created within Strafford’s offense.
“The big thing for me is just letting the game come to me,” Frank said. “Some people try to double and stuff, so the big thing is get my teammates open first, and that will kind of create for myself.”
Prior to Frank’s third-quarter eruption, defensive efforts from both teams told the early story.
West Plains, in particular, was able to disrupt the Strafford attack and limit scoring opportunities with its pesky zone.
For Stafford and head coach Steve Frank, making the proper adjustments proved to be key in breaking down the Lady Zizzer defense.
“West Plains is notorious for playing in their zone, and it’s just a grind-out game every time you play them,” Coach Frank said. “We kind of changed it up there a little bit, and Oliver did a really good job pushing the ball to one side and trying to overload. That’s when we started getting some things on the back side.”
While Strafford’s offense can cause teams fits when it gets rolling, a defensive gem from point guard Abby Oliver proved just as vital in Wednesday’s game.
Tasked with the difficult assignment of checking West Plains point guard Payton Richards, fans certainly got their money’s worth watching the all-state selections do battle.
Oliver worked to push the 5’7” Richards to the off-hand and helped limit the senior to 11 points in the contest.
“I played with her most of the summer, so I got to do that a lot during practices,” Oliver said. “Coach just told me to keep her to the right side, so that’s what I tried to do.”
Oliver was quiet most of the afternoon on the offensive end, but struck a pair of 3-point daggers during Strafford’s third-quarter run. She finished with 12 points, all from behind the arc.
For West Plains and head coach Scott Womack, the game hinged on making the most of each possession and slowing down the Strafford attack.
“We felt like we had to take advantage of any mistakes they made,” Womack said. “We got a few turnovers, but just didn’t capitalize. I was really proud of the girls, though. I thought our effort was really good.”
As with most teams on Strafford’s schedule, Womack and the Lady Zizzers struggled trying to contain Frank.
“You’ve got to give them credit,” Womack said. “The Frank girl makes a play every time. We got the score tied 19-19 there in the second quarter, and then she scored the last seven points of the quarter. When they need someone to score, she’s the one that’s going to do it.”
Elle Williams led West Plains with 17 points.
Next up for Strafford (9-0) is a matchup with No. 6 Rogersville (9-2). The Pink Division semifinal will take place Thursday at 5:30pm at the O’Reilly Family Event Center.
For West Plains (5-4), a consolation semifinal clash with Ozark (6-3) is set for Thursday at 2:00pm in Weiser Gymnasium.
Pink Division quarterfinal: Strafford – 60, West Plains – 46
Strafford 12 14 23 11 — 60
West Plains 8 11 16 11 — 46
Strafford scoring: Hayley Frank – 26, Abby Oliver – 12, Kayley Frank – 9, Zoey Mullings – 6, Kyndall Compton – 5, Mica Chadwell – 2
West Plains scoring: Elle Williams – 17, Payton Richards – 11, Kendra Davison – 8, Lily Harris – 6, Hailey Meeks – 2, Abee Shelton – 2
