The Shadow
HOT SPRINGS – The James River Knights scored a King-sized win Saturday.
Ashley King’s reverse layup in the final minute gave the Knights the lead for good in James River’s crucial 41-40 win over Bath County in a Pioneer District showdown for first place.
King scored 21 points on the afternoon, but none were bigger than her final two.
She went baseline and scored on the reverse layup with 48 seconds left in the game, giving the Knights a 39-37 lead.
King then recorded a steal at the other end of the court with 24.6 seconds remaining, and two free throws by Morgan Hufford extended the James River lead to 41-37 with 5.1 seconds left.
Angela Herscher’s 3-pointer at the buzzer accounted for the 41-40 final.
The Knights overcame a six-point deficit midway through the final quarter.
A Jailyn Ford basket gave the Chargers a 35-29 lead, but the Knights countered with an 8-2 spurt to tie it at 37-all.
Cheyenne Falls’ offensive rebound of a missed Hufford free throw squared things at 37-37 and set the stage for the dramatic finish.
Falls finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds for James River, who held a 43-28 advantage on the boards.
“That’s the way two first place teams should play,” said Bath County coach Keith Lindsay. “Everybody left it out on the floor today.”
Herscher scored eight of her 12 points in the final period for the Chargers, while Alexa Faraone hit three 3-pointers and just missed double figures with nine.
The Chargers played much of the game without Ford and Kayla Baugh, who were both hampered by foul difficulties.
“My bench did a good job, but down the stretch they got a little tentative, and James River took advantage of some mismatches. They had their experienced people on the floor, and I didn’t,” Lindsay said.
King scored nine in the first half, and the Knights led 14-13 at intermission.
The Chargers trailed 23-18 late in the third quarter, but a 7-0 run to close the period gave them a 25-23 lead after three.
Two Jessie O’Conner free throws, a Faraone three and a Hannah Robertson jumper gave the Chargers a 25-23 lead entering the final quarter.
With the victory, the Knights improved to 14-6 overall, 8-1 in the Pioneer.
Meanwhile, the Chargers dropped to 7-2 in the district and 13-5 overall.
The teams renew their acquaintances Tuesday evening at James River.
A James River win would give them the Pioneer regular season title, while a Bath County victory could possibly mean a three-way tie between the Chargers, Knights and Covington Cougars for the regular season championship.
In Saturday afternoon’s opener, Taylor England scored 11 points in James River’s 36-23 win.
For the Chargers, Emily Black scored eight, while Tabby McCulley scored five. Myranda Matheny added three, while Mikayla Colaw, Meagan Brown and Lacey Kirby had two each, and Whitney Shifflett scored one.
The Knights enjoyed a 21-10 lead at intermission.
