Parkersburg South's Emilee Owens, left, and fellow senior teammate Tae Richards walk off the court smiling Friday night inside the Charleston Coliseum following the No. 5 Patriots' 51-43 upset of No. 1 George Washington in the Class AAAA state semifinals. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

CHARLESTON – No. 5 Parkersburg South stunned top-seeded George Washington 51-43 in overtime here Friday night during the Class AAAA state semifinals inside the Charleston Coliseum.

In a game that wasn’t for the faint of heart in terms of shooting percentages, the local Patriots of head man Ed Davis survived long scoring droughts in the second and fourth quarters as the other Patriots (22-2) of head coach Jamie LaMaster never solved the zone defense and couldn’t hold on despite a 37-30 lead midway through the final stanza.

“Garry Harvey does all the zone work with them. He deserves all the credit for that,” admitted Davis, who got a game-high 18 points from Quinn Bolyard that included a trio of pivotal triples in the final eight minutes to force overtime at 39-all. “They are a special group of young ladies. It looked like a couple of times in the second half we were probably left for dead.

“But we hit some big shots and they are tough to run stuff against because of their quickness. We stuck with it, moved the ball, made the extra pass and hit some big shots down there. Got it to overtime and wow. Just the defensive effort and switching defenses and them reacting and knowing exactly and communicating with each other because they couldn’t hear us. It’s a great example of their teamwork and what they’ve done all year. I couldn’t be more proud of them and they have earned this opportunity.”

Bolyard, who grabbed a game-high nine rebounds, was joined in double figures by Emilee Owens with 14 points.

Parkersburg South's Emilee Owens, left, and Quinn Bolyard battle George Washington's Ray Breckenridge for a loose ball during Friday night's Class AAAA state semifinal inside the Charleston Coliseum. Fifth-seeded South upset No. 1 GW, 51-43. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

Grace Dotson, whose trifecta via a Lindsey Logston assist gave PSHS a 12-6 lead after one as she beat the buzzer, finished with seven points. Logston, who had five steals, joined Kenna Mace (eight caroms) with six counters.

Parkersburg South, which will carry a 19-5 record into Saturday night’s title game, led 18-16 at the half but did so while shooting 33% (8 of 24) as GW was even colder at 24.1% (7 of 29) and that included missing 17 of 19 from distance. Coach Davis’ squad didn’t score the final 4:54 of the half after Mace’s bucket made it 18-12.

Ray Breckenridge, who had 13 points while teammate Jeriyah Pryor led the way with 16, gave GW its first lead since 3-2 when she opened the third with a trey 90 seconds in. The score remained 19-18 until she converted a runner at the 4:57 mark.

The Kanawha County Patriots had their biggest advantage with 3:03 left in the third at 28-20 following two makes by Pryor, which included a 3, as well as a Zi’Keryah Myers bucket. The 12-2 run was finally stopped by a Dotson baseline conversion, but GW led 31-27 entering the fourth.

South soon faced a 33-27 deficit as Mattison Sosebee hit a pair of foul shots before Bolyard hit from downtown. PSHS closed to within three at 39-36 with 1:18 left following another Bolyard triple, and she got her third trey with 1:01 to go as neither squad managed to dent the scoreboard again in regulation.

Parkersburg South head coach Ed Davis hunts for an explanation with an official during the No. 5 Patriots' 51-43 overtime victory Friday night inside the Charleston Coliseum versus No. 1 George Washington. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

A steal by Logston and her ensuing layup 28 ticks into the extra session put South ahead for good. Bolyard added another dagger from beyond the arc at the 2:40 mark and it was 46-39 PSHS after Owens canned a pair of charity stripe tosses, which marked a 13-0 spurt after tailing 39-33 with 2:16 to go in regulation.

“It’s definitely exciting,” said Owens, who was nearly taken out late in the fourth by Pryor as she left the game but later returned.

“We cut the net down at home. Tomorrow if we get to cut down that would definitely be the best thing. I’ve been here for four years so I’ve been waiting.”

Bolyard was asked about her hot shooting streak where she was knocking them down in front of her own bench in the fourth.

“I was pretty cold in the first half and I looked at Emilee walking out the locker room and I was like ‘Emilee, this is our half. We’re knocking them down. We’re hitting them’ and I just couldn’t think about it,” Bolyard said.

The Parkersburg South student section reacts Friday night inside the Charleston Coliseum during the No. 5 Patriots' 51-43 upset of No. 1 George Washington in the Class AAAA state semifinals. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

“Like you can’t think about it when you are shooting them so I think the first half I was kind of thinking about it and I just quit thinking about it. I was just having fun out there. Trying to have fun and started hitting them I guess.”

Parkersburg South shot 33% (17 of 52) compared to GW’s 26% (14 of 54).

Logston, who was held to a rare single digit effort in the scoring department, was asked how her team managed to survive the drought in the second as well as a span of 5:46 in the fourth between the first and second trifectas by Bolyard.

“I think a lot of it was just our effort,” Logston said. “Everyone, especially Emilee and Quinn, just did a great job flying around, getting the tips, loose balls, rebounds and I think that’s what helped us stay strong through those droughts and push it out until the end.”

Myers and Ady Gumm finished with six points apiece for GW, which got six boards from Gumm as well as a game-high six steals from Pryor.

Parkersburg South's Tae Richards is fouled by George Washington's Mariah Johnson during the No. 5 Patriots' 51-43 Class AAAA state semifinal overtime upset of the top-seeded Patriots Friday night inside the Charleston Coliseum. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

“They did a great job today. They did what they had to do,” coach LaMaster said of South. “I’m proud of the season my girls put together.”

Contact Jay Bennett at jbennett@newsandsentinel.com

George Washington's Jeriyah Pryor is credited with a blocked shot against Parkersburg South's Grace Dotson during the No. 5 Patriots' 51-43 Class AAAA state semifinal upset of the top-seeded Patriots on Friday night inside the Charleston Coliseum. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

Parkersburg South's Lindsey Logston comes away with one of her team-high five steals during the No. 5 Patriots' 51-43 overtime upset of No. 1 George Washington during Friday night's Class AAAA state semifinal inside the Charleston Coliseum. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)