POTTSVILLE -- This wasn't supposed to be Prairie Grove's season. With five juniors in the starting lineup, it had its sights on next year's state tournament.
Prairie Grove pushed Ozark to the limit for nearly three quarters Monday night when the Ladd sisters said that was enough.
4A North Regional Tournament
Girls
Ozark 52, Prairie Grove 44
Ozark^16^11^12^13^—^52
Prairie Grove^12^9^14^9^—^44
Prairie Grove (20-11): M. Hartin 17, Bartholomew 9, Cox 7, T. Hartin 5, Lopez 5, Stone 1.
Ozark (28-3): K. Ladd 17, Heffington 8, Melton 8, Ree 6, H. Ladd 5, McClellan 5, Shaffer 3.
Kylie Ladd sparked a 13-0 scoring run with a go-ahead bucket, and her little sister Hannah hit a 3-pointer as part of a monster run that carried Ozark to a 52-44 win in the finals of the 4A North Regional Tournament.
Experience was a key to Ozark's win.
"We rely on senior leadership, but I thought our younger players did a good job, too," Ozark coach Bret Nagel said. "We knew they (Prairie Grove) were capable of doing that, and we also knew that if they got the lead and the ball that they were probably going to pull it out. I was extremely proud of the way our kids handled adversity."
Ozark, the host team, will play its 4A state tournament opener at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. The Lady Hillbillies (28-3) appeared to be on their way when Prairie Grove caught fire.
Mattie Hartin's 3-pointer with 3 minutes, 19 seconds to play in the third quarter capped a 14-5 Lady Tigers run and gave Prairie Grove its first lead since early in the first quarter. Hartin led the Lady Tigers with 17 points.
But Kylie Ladd hit a basket, Hannah Ladd drained a long 3-pointer, and Ozark's Katie Shaffer and Lexi McClellan opened the fourth quarter with back-to-back 3-pointers as Ozark's lead swelled to 47-35.
Kylie Ladd led all scorers with 17 points.
"We knew going in that No. 10 (Kylie Ladd) was a great player, but during that stretch, (Shaffer and McClellan) hit two big threes and that was role players making plays," Prairie Grove coach Kevin Froud said. "That's why they're a good team -- they have role players that made big plays."
Ozark benefited from two last-second scoring chances in the first two quarters. Hannah Ladd gobbled up an offensive rebound with 0:02 left in the first, then sank two foul shots for a 16-12 lead.
The Lady Hillbillies extended their lead to 18-12 early in the second quarter, but Prairie Grove fought back to within one twice before Ozark stretched its lead back to six. Celia Heffington's layup and Olivia Melton's last-second put-back gave the Lady Hillbillies a 27-21 halftime lead.
Prairie Grove (20-11), which had its 10-game winning streak snapped, will open tournament play at 2:30 p.m. Thursday.
Huntsville 54, Pottsville 46
The Lady Eagles took a one-point halftime lead and extended it in the second half to lock down the No. 3 seed by knocking off the host Lady Apaches.
Huntsville (25-7) will open 4A state tournament play at 1 p.m. Wednesday in Ozark.
Cierra Creek led the Lady Eagles with 17 points. Miranda Campbell added 12 and Delanie Tipton 12. Julia Baker led Pottsville with 13 points.
Boys
Arkansas Baptist 65, Huntsville 56
The Eagles will enter the state tournament on a two-game losing streak.
Arkansas Baptist took a five-point halftime lead and never let it go in claiming the No. 3 seed.
River Gosvener led Huntsville (29-4) with 19 points. Caleb Kirk added 12 and Jose Aguilar 11. The Eagles will open state tournament play at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
Sports on 03/03/2015