Patriots hang on

Parkersburg South girls escape Spring Valley on dedication night, 51-50

PARKERSBURG -- On dedication night Monday at Parkersburg South High School, the end result for the Patriots' girls game against Spring Valley followed in line with the success of the individual whose name now appears on the gym floor.

The South basketball family honored the late Scott Stephens, who won 255 games and three state titles during his 13 years coaching Patriot girls basketball, with his family members and more than 40 former players in attendance.

Once the photo opps and video montage were complete, this year's version of South basketball held its collective breath in a 51-50 victory. The Timberwolves trailed by as many as 16 points, yet had an attempt for game-winning, buzzer-beater from halfcourt completely miss the rim.

Behind a team-high 13 points from Carrie Rhodes off the bench, South improves to 3-1. The Spring Valley bigs wreaked havoc in the post Allie Daniels scoring 12 points and Dria Parker added another 11 points. Timberwolves outside threat Hallie Bailey knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and finished 12 points.

An almost flawless five minutes of basketball in the first quarter enabled South to stay in front for good.Down 2-0, the Patriots cooked up a 14-0 run behind the spark of Rhodes and a pair of assists from Skylar Bosley. South extended the advantage to as many as 16 points (20-4) on Rhodes and-one.

The difference remained double digits until the turnover bug bit South late in the third quarter. Parker was responsible for a pair of buckets as the Timberwolves closed to within 36-30 with just less than two minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Beca Shamblin roadblocked Spring Valley's momentum with a 3-pointer just before the end of the quarter then added an assist and another bucket during an 6-0 spurt which gave the Patriots some breathing room at 47-40 midway in the fourth quarter.

After the two sides traded baskets, Spring Valley made another push with a 7-0 run . Crum's steal and ensuing layup tied the game at 49 at the 1:05 mark. Rhodes stepped yet again with a critical bucket but a foul put Crum on the line for the 1-and-1 with 33.3 seconds showing. Crum made the front end.

South came up empty on their next possession. Parker made her way to halfcourt and let the shot fly off the mark just as the buzzer sounded

Not exactly the way coach Stephens would have drew it up, but as his daughter, Kim Stephens, said during her presentation to the crowd for the dedication ceremony, her father always said "Anytime you hear the ball bouncing, it's a a good day."

As she kept her emotions in check long enough for her speech, Kim added "And today, is a great day."

When the video montage kicked in remembering their Scott Stephens' legacy at South, that's when the tears started to flow throughout the Stephens family seated near mid-court. Kim Stephens was joined by her two sisters, Jill and Ann, her grandmother Betty and the lady behind the scenes who remained the rock throughout-- Scott's wife, Linda.

"If I could go back in time, I would give a shout-out to my mom in my speech," said Kim, who coached her Glenville State College women's basketball for a game earlier in the day. She was touched that members of her team would drive to Parkersburg and be on hand for the dedication. "Watching that that video, there were a lot of emotions showing all the success he had. Having him as assistant coach at (GSC), I learned a lot from him -- how to build to build relationships."

Among the former players in attendance, Parkersburg South 2007 graduate Taylor Phillips hit on that very same connection that Scott Stephens established with his players. Phillips came dressed for the occasion, wearing her letterman's jacket and a South pullover.

"There are a lot of emotions, a lot of feelings, a lot of memories that come back on a night like tonight," Phillip said. "I could probably go on forever what I learned from coach Stephens. He was definitely more than a coach. He was like a father to all of us -- cared about our futures, cared about our well-being. He made us better as a person."