OLIVESBURG — Mansfield Christian dodged a bullet Wednesday night.
The fourth-seeded Flames rallied in the second half and pulled away for a 49-38 overtime win over No. 8 South Central in the opening game of a Division IV sectional semifinal doubleheader at Crestview High School.
The Flames beat South Central twice during the regular season, including a 70-28 shellacking at the Wayne Roller Holiday Showcase in late-December. MCS won the rematch at South Central in late-January 54-44.
“The first time we played them, they had some illness. The final score wasn’t really indicative of how good they are,” Mansfield Christian coach Megan Young said. “They really showed up and played us tough. They are aggressive and they are scrappy.”
South Central led 23-16 at the half and 30-23 with just over a minute remaining in the third quarter before the Flames came to life. Back-to-back 3-pointers by MCS’s Alexis Rippel and Noelle Beare cut South Central’s lead to 30-29 going into the fourth.
Mansfield Christian took its firs lead since early in the first quarter on Abby Little’s baseline jumper with 5:48 remaining, giving the Flames a 32-30 lead. MCS led 38-33 with 1:05 to play after Aubrynn Maiyer hit both ends of a one-and-one.
But the Trojans closed regulation on a 5-0 to force overtime. Grace Lamoreaux drained a corner 3-pointer with 11 seconds left to tie the score at 38-38.
“We were fortunate that Grace hit the shot to put it into overtime,” South Central coach John Vogel said. “We got a chance, but in overtime we just couldn’t score.”
The Flames outscored South Central 11-0 during the four-minute extra session. Anna Sparks took the overtime tip and scored while being fouled. She hit the free throw for a conventional three-point play and MCS never looked back.
Sparks led Mansfield Christian with 11 points, while Kyleah Jones added 10. Rippel had nine and Little chipped in with eight.
Kendyl Beverly led the Trojans with 17 points. Lamoreaux added eight.
Mansfield Christian will play No. 6 Norwalk St. Paul for a sectional title at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Crestview.
