ELKINS - March Madness came early in the 3A-1 Regional Tournament.
Kaylie Pyles scored 18 points as the fourth-seeded Mansfield girls stunned two-time defending state champion and top-seed Greenland 41-39 Wednesday in the opening game of the regional tournament at the Elks gym. Greenland (18-10) is done for the year, while Mansfield (17-13) earned a berth to the state tournament after finishing sixth in conference play during the regular season.
Mansfield won the game despite being held to a single field goal in the second quarter. Pyles and Erica McKay hit free throws in the final 16 seconds to break a tie, and Greenland missed badly on a last-second three-pointer to end the game.
“I couldn’t be more proud of these girls,” Mansfield Coach Keith Dake said. “We worked together as a team and was intense from start to finish.”
Greenland played nearly the final six minutes without guard Anna Rogers, who was ejected from the game for throwing a punch. The sequence started when Rogers and Pyles hit the floor for a loose ball and got tangled up. Rogers, who finished with nine points, was called for throwing a punch and had to leave the game while Mansfield added three points to take a 36-31 lead.
“[Rogers] lost her cool, but ejection? I don’t think so,” Greenland Coach Alan Barton said. “If you’re going to eject one, eject the other. But the bottom line is we didn’t make shots.”
Greenland made mistakes down the stretch with Rogers, a senior, out of the lineup. The Lady Pirates fouled unnecessarily and put Mansfield on the line with the game tied and 16 seconds left. Greenland also lost scoring chances with a turnover and a shot that hit the bottom of the backboard with 2.7 seconds left to play.
“When you’ve got one of the best point guards in the state ejected, you’ve got to go find somebody else,” Barton said. “It just wasn’t meant to be.”
4A EAST REGION LONOKE 36, POCAHONTAS 32
CLINTON - Callie Whitfield hit two free throws with :06 to play to put the Lady Rabbits (23-6) up by four.
Sophomore Jarrelyn McCall led Lonoke with 12 points. Kate Junkersfeld paced Pocahontas with 10 points. Ashleyn Ellis scored nine.
4A SOUTH REGION MALVERN 85, WARREN 47
NASHVILLE - Raven Baker hit four three-pointers and finished with 21 points as the Lady Leopards (25-2) knocked off the Lady Lumberjacks in a first-round game.
Tiffany Murdock added 13 for Malvern, while Akasha Westbrook scored 11, and Alivia Huell, Tieris Smith and Koree Walsh all put in 10.
STAR CITY 49, BAUXITE 29
Jaida Harden led the Lady Bulldogs (25-2) with 29 points, 5 steals, 3 assists and 9 rebounds in a first-round victory over the Lady Miners.
Allison Tackett paced Bauxite with 15 points, 3 rebounds and 2 steals.
3A REGION 2 RIVERVIEW 57, MAYFLOWER 33
HASKELL - Meg Meachum scored a game-high 19 points, leading the Lady Raiders (20-4) to a dominant first-round victory over the Lady Eagles at Benton Harmony Grove High School.
Tristen Lasker led Mayflower (16-11) with 12 points, all after halftime.
JESSIEVILLE 41, ROSE BUD 34
Overcoming a cold-shooting first half, Jessieville warmed up in the second half to pull out a victory over Rose Bud.
Madison Hair and Amanda Rhodes scored 12 points each for the Lady Lions (19-7), with Rhodes hitting four free throws in the final 36 seconds.
2A EAST REGION ENGLAND 59, DES ARC 40
CARLISLE - Alesha Penister scored 17 points and the Lady Lions (24-4) overcame a 26-24 halftime deficit to knock off the Lady Eagles.
Cecela Phillips and Julia Bryant added 12 points each for England.
1A REGION 1 KINGSTON 56, LEAD HILL 41
LEAD HILL - The Kingston Lady Yellowjackets overcame a sluggish start to defeat the Lead Hill Lady Tigers 56-41 in the opening round of the Class 1A Region 1 Tournament on Wednesday night at Tiger Gym.
Senior post Haley Summers, who transferred from Lead Hill to Kingston in the off season after her father Pat was named the Lady Yellowjackets’ coach, celebrated her homecoming with 23 points that included an 11-for-12 performance at the free-throw line. Summers took over the game in the fourth quarter when she scored 11 of her team’s 18 points.
The Lady Yellowjackets, the top seed from the 1A-1 West Conference, trailed most of the first quarter when the Lady Tigers led by as many as four points twice and took an 11-9 edge at the end of the first quarter.
But Kingston began the second quarter with a 6-0 run, taking a 15-11 lead on a basket by Hannah Villines. A three-pointer by Kimber Davidson made it 23-15 at the 2:50 mark, and Villines hit two free throws for a 25-15 lead. Kingston outscored Lead Hill 20-9 in the second to lead 29-20 at halftime.
Lead Hill scored two baskets in the third quarter, but scored the first five points of the second half and pulled to within 29-25 on a bucket by Hailey Groen with 5:12 left in the quarter. Kayla Smith responded on the other end with a three-point play to start a 7-0 Kingston run, which took a 38-27 lead into the fourth quarter.
WESTERN GROVE 58, COUNTY LINE 49
The Lady Warriors (27-11) opened the regional by building a huge second-half lead before having to hold off the Lady Indians (12-20) down the stretch.
Western Grove led 15-9 after a quarter and was up 28-16 in the second before holding a 28-23 edge at halftime. The Lady Warriors led 46-34 after three.
Hattie Horton led all scorers with 22 points for Western Grove. Chenoa Nichols led County Line with 15 points.
1A REGION 2 IZARD COUNTY 61, CROWLEY’S RIDGE 16
BROCKWELL - Lauren Jones scored 22 points and grabbed six rebounds as the Lady Cougars (19-13) cruised to an opening-round victory over the Lady Falcons.
MaKayla Gross scored 18 points and Hannah Doty 10 points for Izard County.
NORFORK 57, MAYNARD 47
Freshman Kelcy Acklin scored 25 points as the No 4-seeded Lady Panthers posted an upset of the Lady Tigers.
Breanna Roberts led Maynard with 17 points.
Sports, Pages 21 on 02/27/2014