Girls basketball: SC wins game, coin toss; Pine View-Hurricane to ‘play-in’

Written by Darren Cole
February 10, 2017
Hurricane's Madi Hirschi (33) and Snow Canyon's Tylei Jensen (1) and Snow Canyon's Lindsy McConnell (32), Snow Canyon vs. Hurricane, Girls Basketball, St. George, Utah, Feb. 9, 2017, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

ST. GEORGE – The Snow Canyon Lady Warriors had to win their game Thursday to extend their season. They did.

Then, as the three principals for Pine View, Snow Canyon and Hurricane entered the coach’s office at Snow Canyon for the coin flip, the Snow Canyon coaching staff waited outside for the result. While no announcement was made, the result was apparent when Snow Canyon’s representative came out and lifted Snow Canyon coach Dan Roden in the air. The Warriors won the flip and will take the fourth seed. Pine View and Hurricane will have to face each other one more time to determine the final playoff team from Region 9.

>>> UPDATE: Pine View and Hurricane’s play-in game has been set for Wednesday evening at 6 p.m. at Snow Canyon High School. The winner is the No. 3 seed and will play at Morgan Feb. 18.

Below are game summaries of Thursday night’s action:

Snow Canyon 49, Hurricane 45

Jasmine Lealao did not hit all of her free throws down the stretch for the Lady Warriors, but she hit enough to maintain a slight, but uncomfortable, margin to secure the victory. Holding onto a 43-40 lead with 1:23 remaining, Hurricane sent Lealao to the line four times. The first three times she hit one of two. But with the game at 47-45 with 13 ticks still on the clock, Lealao drained both for the four-point lead. Hurricane was unable to score again.

Snow Canyon’s Lindsy McConnell (32), Snow Canyon vs. Hurricane, Girls Basketball, St. George, Utah, Feb. 9, 2017, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

The game was tight throughout the first half. Most of Snow Canyon’s points in the first came from the line, while Hurricane got some great entry passes into post Alexa Christensen for two baskets. When the first quarter horn sounded, the game was tied 7-7.

In the second, Hurricane began to pull away. Jayden Langford’s free throws with 5:05 on the clock gave Hurricane a 15-10 lead. But the Warriors ended the half on a 10-3 run. Hallie Remund gave Lindsy McConnell a good interior pass for an easy basket, then on the next possession took a pass from point guard Tylei Jensen and tied the game with a runner, 18-18. Jensen finished the scoring in the first half with a basket of her own to give Snow Canyon the lead back.

Snow Canyon’s Melenaite Kata (35) and Hurricane’s Madi Hirschi (33), Snow Canyon vs. Hurricane, Girls Basketball, St. George, Utah, Feb. 9, 2017, | Photo by Robert Hoppie, ASPpix.com, St. George News

Coming out of the locker room, it was the Lady Warriors that took the early initiative. Jensen stole the ball in the backcourt, then fed Brielle Hoskins for the first two points. That ignited a 9-0 run that ended with Hoskins finding Lealao for a wide-open 3-pointer. With 5:40 left in the third, the Warrior lead was 29-18.

“I thought we came out at halftime with some fire,” said Snow Canyon head coach Dan Roden. “The girls knew what needed to be done and they played more determined in the second half.”

Hurricane head coach Franci Homer called timeout. Whatever she said in the huddle seemed to awaken her players. Langford came out more aggressive and took the ball several times to the basket, getting the score, the foul or both. The Lady Tigers outscored Snow Canyon 9-2 over the next five minutes and pulling HHS to within 31-27. The lead climbed to 33-28 to start the fourth quarter.

“We tried to keep someone in front of Langford defensively,” said Snow Canyon head coach Dan Roden. “If she got by her defender, we had people giving help-side defense. Remund is able to guard four different positions on the floor with her length and agility. She was big defensively tonight.”

Snow Canyon hit three free throws to begin the fourth quarter scoring. Landford and Madi Hirschi then connected on baskets, the latter after a steal by Hirschi. Remund then hit a trey from the left corner for the Lady Warriors to get the lead back to 39-32 with 4:50 left in the game.

The Lady Tigers then went on a 7-2 run. Christensen’s free throws cut the lead to 41-39 with 2:25 remaining. Remund hit a jumper in the lane on Snow Canyon’s next possession. After a Tiger free throw cut the lead to 43-40, Hurricane’s point guard, Kylee Rivers, fouled out. That foul with 1:23 remaining began Lealao’s free-throw shooting in the final seconds of the game.

Individually for Snow Canyon, Lealao had 17 points. Remund and Hoskins scored 10 and 7, respectively. For Hurricane, Langford led the team with 17. Christensen and Hirschi scored 10 and 8.

With the win, Snow Canyon moved into a three-way tie with Pine View and Hurricane. Their region record is 4-6 and their overall record is 11-10. With the coin flip resulting in their favor, the Warriors secured the fourth seed in Region 9 and will open the tournament against Region 11 No. 1 seed Juan Diego.

Hurricane finished 4-6 in Region 9 and 11-10 overall. The Tigers will have to play Pine View to determine the third seed. Date and time for the play-in game has yet to be determined, though the game will likely take place Tuesday night. The winner of the play-in game will be seeded third in Region 9 and will have Morgan as a first-round opponent.

Desert Hills 61, Pine View 35

The Lady Thunder outscored Pine View at a two-to-one pace through three quarters. Desert Hills jumped on the Panthers early and would not let them get back into the game.

“We remembered what they did to us at our place,” said Desert Hills head coach Ron Denos. “We took a big lead, then had to fight them off at the end to secure the victory. We were determined not to have a repeat.”

Claire Newby scored all of Pine View’s first quarter points and 13 of the 15 the Lady Panthers scored in the first half. But it was not enough against the multi-faceted attack of the Thunder. Elly Williams led the team with a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds. Morgan Myers had 14 points, seven steals and three assists. Ashley Beckstrand had 13 points and three assists.

For Pine View, Newby finished with 17 points. Saraven Allen had eight points.

Desert Hills claims the No. 1 seed in Region 9 with a 9-1 region record and an overall record of 17-3. The first-round opponent for the Thunder will be Ridgeline, which finished tied for third, but lost the tiebreaker to Logan.

The Lady Panthers fall to 4-6 in Region 9 and 7-10 overall. Pine View will play Hurricane in the play-in game. The winner will claim the third seed and face Morgan in the first round.

Cedar 59, Dixie 39

The Lady Reds applied defensive pressure in the middle two quarters to give them a double-digit lead at halftime and built on it to go into the fourth with a 41-25 lead.

Carley Davis, who has flirted with a double-double all season, again came up just short with 16 points and nine rebounds. Lindsey Robinson’s line was 14 points, seven rebounds, six assists and two steals. Sara Pearson also scored in double figures with 11.

“Our girls played a solid game across the board to finish region play,” said Cedar head coach John Elison. “They looked solid on defense for most the game and worked well together offensively. Hopefully we are in position to perform well for state games.”

For the Lady Flyers, Aspen Bair and Joslyn Bundy shared top-scoring honors with seven points apiece. Kelsea Barker had six points and led the team with four steals. Ilah Wallace led the team with six rebounds. Grace killian led the team with four assists.

“No team likes to end their season with a loss,” said Dixie head coach Jaime Araiza. “Our seniors came out tonight and played hard.”

Cedar finishes second in Region 9 at 7-3 and have an overall record of 16-5. The first-round opponent will be the Lady Grizzlies of Logan, who finished tied for third with Ridgeline with both teams winning on their home floor. But Logan finishes third on the tiebreaker with their win over Juan Diego earlier in the season.

Dixie ends its season with a 2-8 record in Region 9 and an overall record of 6-13.

FINAL REGION 9 GIRLS BASKETBALL STANDINGS
Desert Hills 9-1 (17-3)
Cedar 7-3 (16-5)
Snow Canyon 4-6 (11-10)
Hurricane 4-6 (11-10)
Pine View 4-6 (7-10)
Dixie 2-8 (6-13)

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @oldschoolag

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2017, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Darren Cole recently returned to sportswriting after a 20-plus year hiatus. While pursuing other studies, he developed an early passion for sports writing as a senior writer and sports editor for the Ricks College Scroll in 1988-89. Darren has spent the last 20 years writing legal memorandi and appellate briefs. In addition to his legal career, he has also taught legal and criminal justice courses at the university level for nine years as an adjunct professor. Darren is married to wife Lisa, has two sons and is a confessed sports junkie.

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