Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, October 21, 1994 TAG: 9410210057
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DWIGHT FOXX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: DALEVILLE LENGTH: Medium
The Cavaliers' point guard scored six points in the final 15 seconds as Lord Botetourt defeated William Byrd 58-54 on Thursday night in a Blue Ridge District girls' basketball game.
With her team trailing 54-52, Moore drove on the Terriers defense, nailed a 12-footer and drew the fifth foul on William Byrd star Cathy Smith. After a Terriers timeout, she added the free throw to complete the three-point play and the ninth lead change of the game.
``There are certain players you look for to make plays and Sara is one of those type of players,'' said David Wheat, the Cavaliers' coach.
Moore wasn't finished. William Byrd (10-5 overall, 4-2 in the district) pushed the ball down the court and tried to set up a last-second shot, but Moore intercepted a wing pass and went coast-to-coast for a layup and drew the fifth foul on Cavaliers guard Kelli Runyon with four seconds remaining. She added the game's final point and sealed the victory with her second three-point play.
Moore was more nervous on her free throw with four seconds left than the one 11 seconds earlier that broke the game's sixth tie.
``If I didn't make that one, they could have come down and hit a 3-pointer to tie the game,'' the sophomore said.
Moore said some words were exchanged between the two teams before the contest. Then, she did her Jimmy Johnson impersonation.
``If you're going to talk the talk, you've got to walk the walk, and tonight we walked the walk,'' Moore said.
It was only appropriate the game came down to the two best players on the court - Moore and Smith. When the sophomore standout hit the shot that tied the score, the Botetourt crowd went wild. She had a look of disbelief on her face.
``I didn't think it was going in and I'm not sure that she fouled me,'' Moore said. ``But I'm glad they [the officials] called it.''
Lord Botetourt (11-5, 4-2) is tied for second place in the district with Byrd, two games behind Salem (12-4, 6-0) in the race for the regular-season crown.
``We've got to beat Salem, root for Byrd to beat Salem and hope for a three-way tie,'' Wheat said.
Richard Thrasher, Byrd's coach, was not pleased that his team allowed Moore to penetrate into the teeth of its defense with the game on the line.
``We've lost several tough games this year,'' Thrasher said. ``They played well in the second half and we had some untimely turnovers. We had some foul troubles, too.''
The teams committed 47 fouls - Botetourt 25, Byrd 22 - and their star players sat out much of the third quarter with four fouls apiece.
Both teams had tremendous runs. Byrd used a 10-2 surge at the end of the first half to take a 35-28 lead. The Terriers shot 90 percent (9-for-10) in the second quarter.
Botetourt countered with a 17-2 run in the first four minutes of the third period to take a 45-37 lead. A 14-2 Byrd run in the fourth period gave the Terriers a 54-49 lead with 3:04 remaining.
But Moore led the final charge.
``The difference between the two games, I think we had not grown up as a team,'' Wheat said of his team's Oct.4 loss in Vinton. ``As you know, we have a young team, but they have improved in every phase of the game. I hope coming back like that, when we were down, means that this team is growing up.''
William Byrd (54)
Dyer 1 2-2 4, Kendrick 3 7-9 13, Glenn 3 2-2 9, Hayden 1 0-2 2, Sarver 3 0-2 6, Smith 4 0-0 8, B.Allen 6 0-2 12. Totals 21 11-19 54.
Lord Botetourt (58)
Elliott 1 0-0 2, Hicks 5 1-2 12, Moore 6 6-11 18, Michalski 2 2-2 6, Snodgrass 2 3-6 7, Plunkett 4 1-1 10, Snodgrass 1 1-2 3. Totals 21 14-24 58.
William Byrd 15--20---5--14-54
Lord Botetourt 16--12--19--11-58
Three-point goals: Glenn, Hicks, Plunkett. Total Fouls: William Byrd 22, Lord Botetourt 22. Fouled out: Elliott, Smith, Runyon.
by CNB