MAGAZINE — Parker Dempsey made the second shot of a two-shot, free-throw attempt to give Lavaca a three-point lead with 1.8 seconds left, but Mountainburg made the Golden Arrows wait to celebrate.
Dragons forward Jodin Davidson’s desperation 3-point shot hit the backboard on the left side of the rim as the final buzzer sounded as Lavaca held on to win the 2A-West Regional championship 49-46 on Saturday night at Diamondback Arena.
Lavaca (17-7) made an improbable run through the tournament as a No 4 seed beating No 1 seed Flippin and No. 2 seed Acorn to reach the championship game. The Golden Arrows with be a No. 1 seed in next week’s Class 2A state tournament at Melbourne.
It was the third meeting between Lavaca and Mountain-burg (20-6), which will be a No. 2 seed in next week’s state tournament. Lavaca won the first meeting 58-57, but Mountainburg, a No. 3 seed, won the second game 62-47.
“Mountainburg just plays so hard, and our goal was to match their intensity,” Lavaca coach Renner Reed said. “The last time we played them we didn’t, and they beat us. We did a good job tonight.”
Neither team led by more than five points, and the game was tied after the first quarter and at halftime. Lavaca led 39-38 after three quarters.
Junior guard Drake Grantham had 13 points and six rebounds to lead Lava-ca, while junior guard Kolby Glidewell had 10 points. Junior guard Avery Walker and sophomore guard Alex Hobbs had six rebounds apiece.
Mountainburg senior Ethan Gregory just missed a double-double, finishing with 15 points and nine rebounds before fouling out with 18 seconds left in the game. Davidson finished with 12 points and five rebounds, while Jones had 10 points and six rebounds.
Acorn won the third-place game 46-28 over Mansfield.
GIRLS
COTTER 50, FLIPPIN 42
GIRLS – After losing to Flippin twice in the regular-season, Cotter beat its 2A-1 Conference foe for the second time in a row in postseason play on Saturday afternoon, winning the 2A-West Regional tournament title.
Cotter (23-4), which won its first regional title since 1995, will be a No. 1 seed in next week’s Class 2A state tournament. Flippin (18-9) will be a No. 2 seed.
Senior guard Kaylee Crownover and junior forward Kate Cheek scored 22 and 16 points, respectively, to lead the Lady Warriors, who beat Lady Bobcats 58-36 to win last week’s conference tournament
Flippin rallied in the final minutes of the half with an 11-0 run of its own, capped by a 3-pointer from the right wing by sophomore guard Cheyanne Merkel that trimmed Cotter’s lead to only four points (24-20) at halftime. The Lady Bobcats tied the game at 25 points on a 3-pointer by senior guard Leah Still with 4:24 left in the third quarter, but the Lady Warriors answered with another scoring run. Cotter held Flippin to just three field goals over the next 11 minutes, while extending its lead to 13 points (47-34) on a pair of free throws by Crownover with 1:55 left to play.
Still had 14 points to lead the Lady Bobcats, who only led twice early in the first quarter. Rackley and junior guard Sidney Wire each had nine points.
Mansfield won the third-place game 51-44 over Acorn.