QUITMAN -- The Hector Lady Wildcats discovered a path to success in the Class 2A state tournament that wasn't a part of their plan.
Hector's defensive pressure, along with dominance on the offensive glass, helped secure a 47-42 victory over the Spring Hill Lady Bears in the quarterfinals Friday afternoon.
"It was not something we figured we could do,'' Hector Coach Hunter Sims said. "We tried it, and it worked a couple of times, so we stuck with it."
Hector (21-12) forced 21 turnovers and had 14 offensive rebounds in the comeback victory. Spring Hill (21-10) led 15-12 after one quarter, and Hector's only lead of the first half came at 22-21. The Lady Wildcats trailed 23-22 at halftime.
Going into the final quarter, it was 37-34 Lady Bears.
A 10-0 Hector run started with a pair of Cassidy Haley free throws late in the third quarter. When Spring Hill scored with three minutes left, Hector's lead was 42-39. A three-pointer by Katie Rivera with 1:50 left made it 43-42, but that was as close as the Lady Bears could get.
Haley hit 4 of 6 free throws the rest of the way, and Hector managed to play keep away down the stretch. Spring Hill managed just one shot while committing two turnovers in the final two minutes.
Haley led the Lady Wildcats with 21 points. Rivera scored the final 11 points for Spring Hill. Christy Randle also scored 11.
PANGBURN 55,
MARMADUKE 50
Pangburn senior Brooklyn Burress missed the district tournament because of illness, and Lady Tigers Coach Christi Rolland said Burress is now making up for lost time.
Burress scored six of her 13 points in a one-minute stretch in the closing moments to lead Pangburn (31-9) to the semifinals against Hector. She also had a key steal as the Tigers rallied from a 46-45 deficit in the final three minutes.
Burress hit a three-pointer with 2:25 left that gave Pangburn a lead it wouldn't lose. She followed with two more field goals and a big steal with 27 seconds left.
Sophomore Natalie Shelton led Marmaduke (32-11) with 15 points and Jordan Mays scored 14.
Sports on 03/04/2017