ASHLAND, Ohio — The charity stripe was anything but charitable to Clear Fork’s Lady Colts on Thursday.
The Colts made just 7 of 16 free throws in a 49-42 loss to Willard in the nightcap of a Division II district doubleheader at Arrow Arena.
“We had about two games when we shot poorly from the free throw line, but we have been going about 70 percent or better,” Clear Fork coach Heidi Roush said. “Our last game we shot 78 percent from the line. It wasn’t a concern coming in.”
The Colts (19-5) jumped out to a 5-0 lead midway through the first quarter before Willard (19-3) responded with a 9-0 run and never trailed again. The Flashes led 11-8 after the first quarter.
“Those first couple minutes it … could have been the nerves playing in this atmosphere,” Willard coach Jon Dawson said. “It took a minute or so and we were over it and did what we needed to do to get back.”
The Colts tied it at 11-11 on an Audra DeLaney 3-pointer early in the second quarter, but Willard closed the quarter on a 13-3 run and took a 24-14 lead to halftime.
“We just stopped being aggressive,” Roush said. “We missed a few shots then we tightened up on the offensive end.”
Keeping it Close: Despite its offensive woes, Clear Fork kept it close in the second half. A DeLaney triple with 2:40 left in the third quarter cut Willard’s lead to 27-23.
“At halftime our goal was to get it to five and I think we had it to three at one point in the third quarter,” Roush said. “The kids really thought it was still in reach. We just needed to hit a couple shots there and it just didn’t go.”
Erika Farst scored a game-high 17 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter, and seven rebounds. DeLaney and Deijah Swihart each had nine points.
Super-Sized: The Flashes were bigger at every spot on the floor and outrebounded the Colts 34-26. Gabi Baldridge, a 6-foot-4 junior center, scored a team-high 15 points.
“We did think it would be difficult to go man-to-man just because of their size,” Roush said. “They get beat on over and over going against kids that size and it wears them down.”
‘Back on the Map’: Clear Fork was the Ohio Cardinal Conference runner-up and handed OCC champ West Holmes its only conference loss.
“I told them they helped put this program back on the map,” Roush said. “The seniors have done a nice job of setting an example of what it takes to become a good team. I just hope the younger kids are paying attention.”
