Lucie Cline scores 25 as Patriots take down Hawks, 61-53
Parkersburg South’s Lucie Cline scored a game-high 25 points and made five 3-pointers to lead the Patriots past University 61-53 Tuesday night at Rod Oldham Athletic Center. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)
Parkersburg South’s Gracie Shamblin (2) forces a pass from University’s Riley Braham during Tuesday’s high school girls basketball game at Rod Oldham Athletic Center (Photo by Kerry Patrick)
Parkersburg South’s Lucie Cline scored a game-high 25 points and made five 3-pointers to lead the Patriots past University 61-53 Tuesday night at Rod Oldham Athletic Center. (Photo by Kerry Patrick)
Parkersburg South’s Gracie Shamblin (2) forces a pass from University’s Riley Braham during Tuesday’s high school girls basketball game at Rod Oldham Athletic Center (Photo by Kerry Patrick)
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PARKERSBURG - As if Lucie Cline's 25 points weren't impressive enough, the sophomore from Parkersburg South turned in an 'Oh, my!' moment on a touch pass for an assist to teammate Payten Mackey during a Patriot 11-0 run which closed out Tuesday's 61-53 win over University at Rod Oldham Athletic Center.
On the night, Cline knocked down five 3-pointers, including three as part of a personal 12-point first quarter, and finished with four assists as the Patriots improved to 8-1 with a road trip to Morgantown waiting in the wings on Thursday.
"Team-work is what got us there," Cline said. "In that first quarter, it feels completely different when you are on. As far as that touch pass in the fourth quarter, Payten and I are like sisters. We have a lot of experience playing together since we were little."
South coach Ed Davis' premonition about University being a far better team than the one the Patriots dismantled by 33 points exactly three weeks ago, nearly came back to haunt.
University's Hannah Stemple (14 points) and Ella Simpson (12 points) both contributed a pair of 3-pointers - an area of the floor the Hawks struggled in the first meeting despite losing starting guard Julia Maisel to an ankle injury midway in the fourth quarter.
"University made two 3-pointers in 20-some attempts the first time we played -- Hannah Stemple is a great shooter and Ella Simpson is a first-team all-stater," Davis said after handing the Hawks their sixth loss in eight games. "They are a proud team. Tonight, they beat us in transition, took it to us and got down the floor. We struggled on transition defense, but University did a good job.
"Tonight's game is what we expected. When we went up there, we could not have played any better. And they struggled shooting the ball. But this is the University team we have seen the last couple of years and the one you will see the rest of the year."
From the outset, University matched South's pace and forced a tie at 22-22 at the end of one quarter when Stemple buried a 3 just before the buzzer.
South received major contributions from its sophomore class, including Mackey (15 points) who accounted for the team's final seven points leading into halftime. A mini 7-0 surge in the latter half of the period enabled University to take a 36-35 lead into intermission.
Trailing 43-40 in the third quarter, Stemple continued to give South fits from the guard position. She buried a 3-pointer from college distance at the top of the arc. On the following possession, she tried to duplicate the feat, missed the mark but flagged down the offensive rebound and found teammate Bri Fox open in the wing for one of six University 3s.
Cline and Mackey answered with buckets in the paint in succession, but the 47-46 lead was short-lived as the Patriots turned the ball over and Fox scored off the steal for a 48-47 Hawks' advantage and one quarter remaining.
Stemple factored in University's one and only field goal of the fourth quarter when she inbounded from underneath her own hoop and found Simpson open for a 3-pointer and a 51-47 lead.
Over the final seven minutes of the game, the Hawks did not make another field goal. During that span, South outscored the Hawks 14-2 thanks in large part to yet another sophomore, point guard Emilee Owens who made 5-of-6 free throws in the final five minutes and finished the game with 11 points.
With South's primary point guard Carley Schaffer having fouled out with 5 ½ minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Patriots also received a pair of clutch free throws from fellow senior Gracie Shamblin to seal the game at 61-53 with 36 seconds showing.
"I thought we did a better job getting back in the fourth quarter," Davis said. "We did a better job in the zone contesting shots. And we rebounded a little bit.
"I give my girls credit. If there was any time they could have felt sorry for themselves where nothing was falling, we had foul trouble -- we could have packed it in at any time, but this is what the girls have done all year. We found a way there at the end."
Contact Kerry Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com