Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
After trailing by 14 at halftime Monday, Lady Bulldogs come back to nip NW Christian, 46-45
Dayton's Shayla Currin attracts a trio of NWC defenders along the baseline as she looks to pass off to a teammate during Monday's sub-regional playoff game in Spokane. Teammate Jenna Phillips looks on at left.
Dayton coach Clayton Strong gives his starters some words of motivation as they prepare to complete their comeback in the fourth quarter.
SPOKANE – With cold shooting hands and facing an unfamiliar defensive scheme, the Dayton girls' basketball team fell behind quickly in their sub-regional matchup here Monday afternoon against Northwest Christian. The Lady 'Dogs trailed 13-3 at the end of the first quarter, and struggled to get anything going.
With about five minutes to go in the first half, Jenna Phillips downed a three-pointer and quickly stole the ball back and drove for a short jumper to draw to within eight, 18-10. But Dayton's cold shooting continued, and NWC built their lead to 26-12 at the half.
In the second half, the Lady 'Dogs fought back, and nipped the Crusaders, 46-45. With the win, the Dayton girls qualified for the state playoff round of 16.
"In the first half we were facing a matchup zone (defense), which we haven't seen much," Dayton coach Clayton Strong said. "And the girls missed a lot of easy shots in that half. But I'll give them credit, they could have folded, and they didn't."
The Lady Bulldogs came out in the second half and hit a couple of quick shots, to start their comeback. The defense also solidified, stifling NWC in the third quarter.
"We went to a zone in the second quarter because of foul trouble," Strong said. "But we went back to man defense in the second half, and really tightened it up." Dayton had a big third quarter, outscoring the Crusaders, 16-6, and trailing after three, 32-28.
With 6:50 to go in the game, Dayton's Jordyn Lowe snagged an offensive rebound and hit a layup to bring Dayton within two, 34-32. Jenna Phillips hit one of two fouls at 6:34, to make it 34-33.
The Crusaders then got hot from outside, and after two successful three-point shots, built the lead back to seven, 40-33, with 3:14 to go. After a Dayton timeout, Sidney Andrews hit two driving layups in the next minute to draw the Lady 'Dogs back to three, 40-37, with 2:14 remaining. A Lexie Ramirez jump shot and another NWC trey made it 43-39 Crusaders at the 1:20 mark. With a minute to go, Sarah Phillips hit a three-pointer to pull Dayton within one.
An NWC sideline violation on the following possession gave the ball back to the Bulldogs. Ramirez responded by hitting a clutch three-pointer, and Dayton led 45-43, with 48 seconds left. It was their first lead of the game.
The Crusaders made one of two free throws after an Andrews foul. Andrews was fouled on the next possession and also made one of two foul shots, pushing the score to 46-44. With 12 seconds left in the game, Andrews again fouled an NWC player, who hit one of two, to bring the score to 46-45.
The Crusaders missed a final desperation shot at the buzzer, which gave the Lady Bulldogs the win.
For the game, Ramirez led Dayton scoring with 12 points. Andrews added eight points, and Jenna Phillips and Jordyn Lowe each chipped in six.
Strong said he was pleased with the second-half play of his team. "We just kept chipping and chipping, and we didn't panic," he said. "I think this team has really benefitted from last year's playoff experience, and they always believe they can win."
On Saturday night at 5 p.m. Dayton will face off against Colfax to determine the #1 and #2 seeds at State. Colfax is one of only two teams who have beaten the Dayton girls this year.
Win or lose, the Lady Bulldogs will play again the following weekend.
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