“We kind of got caught off guard [early] in the game, but then we started getting some shots and that was what helped us,” said Crane coach Jeremy Mullins. “We started getting the ball from our post, and this turned out to be our breakout game for shooting.”
Crane played a fast paced game from the start, picking up five turnovers in the first few minutes.
The Lady Pirates’ guard, Riley Israel (10 points) put up a quick 3-pointer while their defense played Rogersville close under the net.
Rogersville, however, found some space early on at the three point line with Haley Rust (14 points) sinking two consecutive 3-pointers to answer back against Crane’s early lead.
Rogersville took a brief and narrow lead over Crane midway through the first quarter, but could not hold onto it throughout. The quarter ended 20-12.
Crane picked up a commanding lead halfway through the second quarter. Their top scorer, Emma Lander (16 points), and team leader Maggie McMenamy (5 points) set up a make-shift triangle offense that cracked the Rogersville defense wide open.
“We started going inside out. We went inside and their [defense] kind of collapsed in so we could get some shots off,” said Mullins.
After taking a 19-point lead in the second quarter, Crane tightened up on defense, limiting Rogersville’s scoring options.
Rogersville scored only 5 points to Crane’s 21 in the third quarter, leaving the score at 66-31 to start the fourth.
“You know, Crane started making shots in one stretch there, and we kept thinking that maybe they’d slow down,” said Rogersville coach Keith Spaulding. “You’ve got to hand it to Crane, I mean, they’re a great ball team.”
Crane benched their more experienced players for the fourth quarter, scoring only two points. The game ended 68-37.
“We were still looking to push the ball, but we had some subs there that hadn’t gotten a whole lot of time this year… so our players weren’t as experienced,” said Mullins.
After the game, Crane’s McMenamy was named to the all-tournament team for her performance throughout the tournament. She had 32 points against Parkview on Thursday night and, although she scored only 5 against Rogersville, helped solidify Crane’s offensive strategy.
“I like our ball movement on offense, and our defense was really good,” said McMenamy. “I’m going to take away how well I shot and I like how well we played defense.”
Rogers (Ark.) went 3-0, beating Kickapoo, Rogersville and Parkview, to win the tournament.
Crane 20-25-21-2—68
Logan-Rogersville 12-14-5-6—37
Crane—Emma Lander 16, Riley Israel 10, Lexie Vaught 8, Justeen Mahan 7, Loni Johnson 6, Jalee Johnson 6, Maggie McMenamy 5, Allie Hagler 5, Kylee Moore 3, Kylie Vaught 2.
Logan-Rogersville—Haley Rust 14, Audra Metz 7, Kat Arteaga 6, Sam Stiles 5, Nicole Barner 5
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