The Clear Fork Lady Colts shook off a Shelby Lady Whippets third quarter comeback in the Northwest Division 2 Sectional Championship Game at Pete Henry Gymnasium at Mansfield Senior High School on Saturday night.
The Lady Colts never seemed to leave the locker room after the halftime intermission. With a comfortable ten point lead, the Shelby Lady Whippets took advantage of a loss of focus on the Clear Fork end to storm back to tie the ball game up at the end of the third quarter. But, in the final frame, the Lady Colts seemed to figured out that they were still playing a basketball game and picked up the defensive pressure and held Shelby to just four fourth quarter points.
Clear Fork Lady Colts Head Coach Heidi Roush had this to say about the intermission huddle at the end of the third quarter, “We just sort of challenged some of our older girls to step up. They have been in the program for four years, and worked to hard to let their careers just slip away like that. We just told them it was do or die, they were either going to show up and play or go home.”
Lady Colts junior guard Deijah Swihart was a major factor in the fourth quarter. She scored eight straight points in the fourth quarter in route to 18 total points on the night and add 6 rebounds and 5 assists.
“Deijah picked every body up and put them on her back we got a little shaky there in the third and I was wondering who was going to step up and take the leadership role and it was Deijah for sure,” said Coach Roush.
Swihart’s 18 points led the Lady Colts. Junior guard Erika Farst chipped in with 11 and junior guard Morgan Bailey added 8 points. The Lady Colts took home the Sectional Championship crown by a final score of 42-30.
For Shelby, senior Taylor Fulton was the only Lady Whippet to reach double figures with ten points. The Lady Whippets shot 21% from the field for the game.
The Lady Colts will take on Bellevue in the District semifinals on Thursday at Buckeye Central High School.
Coach Roush said of her team’s District semifinal opponent, “We were able to see them play once this season, we are hoping to get some film. They are a very solid team and they have one of the greatest scorers in girl’s basketball. We have to figure out a way to slow her down. We cannot have the mental lapses we had to night on Thursday. We have got to be perfect and that what we will strive to do, just do the little things right.”
