Fairfield Union eliminates Marietta girls in district semi
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LOGAN, Ohio -- All Marietta wanted was a shot at No. 1.
And for 3 1/2 quarters, the Tigers' girls basketball team was in an ideal spot to make the goal reality.
Monday night inside Jim Myers Gymnasium at Logan High School, 12th-seeded Fairfield Union outscored Marietta 21-2 over a nine-minute stretch in the second half and eliminated the Tigers from the postseason with a 45-40 win in a Division II district semifinal.
Marietta's impressive run comes to an end at 20-4, while Fairfield Union (15-9) advances to Friday's district final against top-ranked Proctorville Fairland (24-0). The game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. opening tip at Southeastern High School in Chillicothe.
Leigha Lauer led Marietta with a game-high 19 points, while McKnight added nine points. For the Falcons, Elly Lewis led the way with 14 points and Christian Thompson followed with 11 points.
In Monday's first game at Logan High School, Fairland defeated Circleville 61-23.
"Setting the standard is the standard, but I would love to have the last half of the third quarter back," Marietta coach Ryan McClain said. "I ran a hundred scenarios through my head that I wish I could repeat. It's the game of basketball. Can't hit the rewind button.
"This is what I hate about coaching. You question yourself more than your wife questions you."
After taking a 16-13 lead into halftime, Marietta made a pair of threes - one by McKnight from way downtown and another from Leigha Lauer - while building its largest lead of the game at 25-17.
Fairfield Union answered with a 9-0 run to close the third quarter and carried the momentum into the final period by extending the cushion to 38-27 with only 2 1/2 minutes showing.
Fairfield Union missed its first 10 attempts from beyond the arc then closed out the game knocking down three of its final four.
"A couple of those threes came on second chances which we did a nice job of eliminating in the first half," McClain said. "It just stinks how hard these girls battled this season and I wish we could have kept this ride going."
The gap reached as many as 10 points, but Marietta kept the fight with consecutive 3-pointers from Alyssa Baker and Lauer and managed to close within 42-36 with one minute left in regulation.
A steal by Lauer gave Marietta two good looks - a 3-pointer and a possible putback -- on the ensuing possession to further cut into the deficit, but neither shot would fall as the Tigers ran out of time.
Despite the four 3-pointers in the second half, Marietta converted just 21% (5-of-24) from beyond the arc.
"The first half, we had them right where we wanted them," McClain said. "We played solid defense."
Contact Kerry Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com