Hammon Escapes Late Threat by Erick for Win

The Lady Warriors held a healthy lead throughout the game, but the win was put in jeopardy when the Lady Bearcats’ shots started falling late in the game.

Thursday, July 28th 2011, 6:09 pm

By: News On 6

Hammon Escapes Late Threat by Erick for Win

Originally Published: Mar 4, 2011 1:44 PM CDT

Stephany Speck
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Hammon Lady Warriors avoided a late-game rally by the Erick Lady Bearcats to advance to the championship game with a 47-41 win.

Erick threatened Hammon’s lead with just four minutes left to play when they crept within four points of tying the game after a long three-pointer by Shyli May.

Erick’s Alicia Brinkley scrambled on a loose ball and made a fast break down the court for a layup to bring the score to 44-39 in favor of Hammon with just a minute left in the game.

The Lady Warriors, seeing their run at the state title in jeopardy fought back. With just 10 seconds left in the game, Jaime Highwalker got the ball and laid in an easy shot for the six-point win.

Erick tried to get a shot off in the final seconds of the game, but it was too little, too late for the Lady Bearcats, who saw their season come to an end at the hands of the Lady Warriors.

Hammon jumped out to an early lead after a 14-4 run in the first quarter. Their shots continued to fall, inching ahead to 29-15 by halftime. Thirteen of the Lady Warriors’ 29 first-half points came from Peyton Walker.

The Lady Bearcats struggled in the first two quarters getting production from anyone other than Maranda Janz’ seven points and Hannah Millar’s six. By the end of the contest, Millar had tallied 19, while both Janz and Brinkley finished with seven apiece.

Hammon’s Lexie Brown continued to be a headache for the Lady Bearcats. Despite ending the game without just two points, the skilled point guard created several plays for her teammates and was able to frustrate Erick while on defense. Walker led all scorers with 20 points, including three 3's.

The Lady Warriors will be playing for their first Gold Ball since 2006 Saturday at 1:30 p.m.