BELLVILLE — Annika Labaki and her Clear Fork teammates did something Friday night they never before accomplished in their basketball careers.
The Colts celebrated a win over Richland County and Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference rival Shelby.
Labaki knocked down four 3-pointers and scored a team-high 14 points and Clear Fork held on for an entertaining 53-51 win at the Colt Corral.
“I’ve never beat them, even in middle school,” Labaki said. “It feels pretty good.”
Clear Fork (13-7 overall, 9-4 in the conference) led 28-21 at the half and 39-30 late in the third period before Shelby (17-5, 10-3) came to life. The Whippets closed the third quarter on a 4-0 run to make it 39-34 going to the fourth frame.
Coach Natalie Lantz’s squad outscored the Colts 13-5 during the first four minutes of the fourth quarter to take a 47-44 lead on a Sarah Reiser layup with 4:04 remaining.
Yet Labaki’s fourth and final triple of the evening tied the game at 47-47 with 3:34 showing. Shelby was whistled for running over the screener on the play and Lilly Wortman split the free throws to give Clear Fork a 48-47 edge. The Colts never trailed again.
“I don’t know how you push through a screen, which happened before the shot, and then they (count) the 3-point shot and get the foul,” Lantz said, “That is a four-point swing.”
The Labaki triple and ensuing free throw ignited a decisive 7-0 burst for the Colts. A Pacey Chrastina layup and a Kylie Belcher free throw gave Clear Fork a 51-47 lead with 1:39 to play.
Still, the Whippets refused to go quietly. Eve Schwemley’s layup with 56 seconds to play sliced the margin to 51-49, but Shelby’s Audi Albert was whistled for her fifth foul 15 seconds later and Lyvia Davis sank both free throws to give Clear Fork a 53-49 edge.
A layup by Shelby’s Charlie Niese with 17 seconds to go made it 53-51 before the Whippets forced a turnover on Clear Fork’s ensuing possession. Shelby took its final timeout to draw up a potential game-tying play, but it never got off as Clear Fork’s Mel Blubaugh stole the ball as time expired.
“For us, it’s just a really good win against a team we have not had a lot of success against,” Clear Fork coach Scott Sellers said. “They played incredibly hard and we were able to withstand it. This time it went our way and I’m really thankful for it.”
Schwemley led Shelby with a game-high 19 points. Albert added 11 and Reiser had eight.
Wortman backed Labaki with 13 points. Freshman Brinley Barnett added 11.
Shelby can still claim a share of its fifth consecutive MOAC title with a win over Ontario on Feb. 9. The Whippets are now tied atop the MOAC standings with Pleasant and River Valley.
“With the year we’ve had and the injuries we’ve had, it’s amazing,” Lantz said. “I’m really proud of our girls with the adversity we’ve fought through. We’ve found a way.”
