Lady Lions bow out of district tournament
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
JACKSON — The Fairfield Lady Lions saw their season come to a close on Saturday afternoon, falling to the No. 1 seeded Waterford Lady Wildcats by a 46-17 score in the Division IV SE District Semifinals at Jackson High School.
The Lady Lions entered the Saturday district tournament game as a No. 4 seed, but at the home of the Ironmen, Fairfield had trouble keeping possession of the basketball due to the tough defense of the defending state champion Lady Wildcats, plus they struggled to make shots fall through the hoop, resulting in the end of their season.
“We knew coming in Waterford was very good, and it is hard to prepare for them,” FHS head coach Chad Hamilton said. “They bring a lot of pressure, and they just don’t make a lot of mistakes. They make every single thing you want to do difficult, and that is why they are the defending state champions.”
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One plus for the Lady Lions on Saturday was junior Grace Shope sank two free throws in the fourth quarter, moving her into a tie for the Fairfield girls basketball all-time scoring record at 1,199 points, equaling the mark set previously by Fairfield graduate Heather Cox.
FHS (13-11) trailed by an 8-0 score after the first frame was complete with the Waterford (21-3) defense holding them scoreless. In fact, the Lady Lions didn’t score their first point of the game until the the 3:39 mark of the second quarter when Shope sank a free throw, as FHS trailed at the time by a 14-1 score.
“Nerves played a part in it, and playing at noon is always strange, but we had some looks at the beginning, and if we would have knocked some of those down early, that changes the mentality,” Hamilton said. “I don’t know if it changes the outcome, but it changes things a little bit because we got in our own head early on.”
The Lady Lions scored two more points off two free throws made by senior Abigail Newkirk at the 2:18 mark of the first (totaling five points for the game), and later she scored their first two-point field goal with 1:37 left in the second frame, with the Lady Lions trailing by an 18-5 score.
By the time halftime arrived, the Lady Lions trailed by a 22-5 score.
In the third, the Lady Lions added to their side of the scoreboard with a jumper from senior Carly Arnold with 5:24 left in the quarter, though before that basket the Lady Wildcats scored the first six points of the quarter, leaving FHS trailing 28-7.
The jumper by Arnold began a 7-0 run for the Lady Lions that also included two free throws by Shope, a put-back bucket from junior Blake Adams and one free throw conversion by Newkirk for a 28-12 score with 1:35 left in the third. Shope finished with seven points, making 5-of-7 free throws for the game and one two-point basket.
By the time the third frame came to an end, the Lady Lions trailed by 22 points by a 34-12 score.
As for the final eight-minute frame, the Lady Lions scored first with Shope stealing the basketball and taking it to the hoop on a fast break for two points 18 seconds into the quarter. Adams scored a free throw for the Lady Lions with 7:09 left in regulation, as she totaled three points for the Lady Lions.
Later, Waterford answered with a three-point play around the 5:40 mark, then continued to add to their lead with another two points 15 seconds later for a 41-15 Fairfield deficit as the Lady Wildcats went on a 9-0 run during the final quarter for what turned into a 45-15 advantage.
The run of scoring was broken up by Shope with two free throws at the 2:58 mark.
Waterford was led in scoring by Megan Ball with 14 points, followed by Alli Kern with 13 points.
Seniors for the Lady Lions are Abigail Newkirk and Carly Arnold.
“Carly is the first girl I’ve coached all four years on varsity and is one of the hardest workers I’ve coached. She brings a lot of effort and hard work and did all the little things that don’t show up in the stats.
“Abby came off the bench and was just a spark plug this year. There are a couple games this year we don’t win if she isn’t on the court. Both of those girls will be missed.”
The Division IV SE District Finals will be played on Thursday, March 2 at JHS. Waterford will play No. 2 seeded South Webster, who defeated Belpre, 44-21 in the second game played Saturday.
The Lady Lions entered the Saturday district tournament game as a No. 4 seed, but at the home of the Ironmen, Fairfield had trouble keeping possession of the basketball due to the tough defense of the defending state champion Lady Wildcats, plus they struggled to make shots fall through the hoop, resulting in the end of their season.
“We knew coming in Waterford was very good, and it is hard to prepare for them,” FHS head coach Chad Hamilton said. “They bring a lot of pressure, and they just don’t make a lot of mistakes. They make every single thing you want to do difficult, and that is why they are the defending state champions.”
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One plus for the Lady Lions on Saturday was junior Grace Shope sank two free throws in the fourth quarter, moving her into a tie for the Fairfield girls basketball all-time scoring record at 1,199 points, equaling the mark set previously by Fairfield graduate Heather Cox.
FHS (13-11) trailed by an 8-0 score after the first frame was complete with the Waterford (21-3) defense holding them scoreless. In fact, the Lady Lions didn’t score their first point of the game until the the 3:39 mark of the second quarter when Shope sank a free throw, as FHS trailed at the time by a 14-1 score.
“Nerves played a part in it, and playing at noon is always strange, but we had some looks at the beginning, and if we would have knocked some of those down early, that changes the mentality,” Hamilton said. “I don’t know if it changes the outcome, but it changes things a little bit because we got in our own head early on.”
The Lady Lions scored two more points off two free throws made by senior Abigail Newkirk at the 2:18 mark of the first (totaling five points for the game), and later she scored their first two-point field goal with 1:37 left in the second frame, with the Lady Lions trailing by an 18-5 score.
By the time halftime arrived, the Lady Lions trailed by a 22-5 score.
In the third, the Lady Lions added to their side of the scoreboard with a jumper from senior Carly Arnold with 5:24 left in the quarter, though before that basket the Lady Wildcats scored the first six points of the quarter, leaving FHS trailing 28-7.
The jumper by Arnold began a 7-0 run for the Lady Lions that also included two free throws by Shope, a put-back bucket from junior Blake Adams and one free throw conversion by Newkirk for a 28-12 score with 1:35 left in the third. Shope finished with seven points, making 5-of-7 free throws for the game and one two-point basket.
By the time the third frame came to an end, the Lady Lions trailed by 22 points by a 34-12 score.
As for the final eight-minute frame, the Lady Lions scored first with Shope stealing the basketball and taking it to the hoop on a fast break for two points 18 seconds into the quarter. Adams scored a free throw for the Lady Lions with 7:09 left in regulation, as she totaled three points for the Lady Lions.
Later, Waterford answered with a three-point play around the 5:40 mark, then continued to add to their lead with another two points 15 seconds later for a 41-15 Fairfield deficit as the Lady Wildcats went on a 9-0 run during the final quarter for what turned into a 45-15 advantage.
The run of scoring was broken up by Shope with two free throws at the 2:58 mark.
Waterford was led in scoring by Megan Ball with 14 points, followed by Alli Kern with 13 points.
Seniors for the Lady Lions are Abigail Newkirk and Carly Arnold.
“Carly is the first girl I’ve coached all four years on varsity and is one of the hardest workers I’ve coached. She brings a lot of effort and hard work and did all the little things that don’t show up in the stats.
“Abby came off the bench and was just a spark plug this year. There are a couple games this year we don’t win if she isn’t on the court. Both of those girls will be missed.”
The Division IV SE District Finals will be played on Thursday, March 2 at JHS. Waterford will play No. 2 seeded South Webster, who defeated Belpre, 44-21 in the second game played Saturday.