Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, November 16, 1994 TAG: 9411170046
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RIDGEWAY LENGTH: Medium
The Terriers ran the Minettes off the floor in the first few minutes on the way to a lopsided 68-31 first-round victory.
Based on the results of a preseason scrimmage and camp games during the summer in which Liberty defeated the Terriers, what happened was completely unexpected. Nevertheless, Byrd (17-7) moves to a semifinal game against Martinsville on Thursday, with a trip to the Group AA tournament awaiting the winner.
``I don't know whether we were nervous or what,'' said David Grant, Liberty's coach. ``A pretty good example of what happened came when we put the ball in play with no one on the floor [after a timeout when Byrd stayed at its bench too long] and it took us two shots to score.
``We tried to do things we never planned to do. Maybe it's been so long since we've been here. We thought we were ready, but we weren't.''
Liberty (18-6) hadn't been to a regional tournament since 1984. The Minettes upset William Campbell and Amherst County in the Seminole District tournament to earn the trip.
Byrd played one of its stronger games. That was especially true of guard Kelli Runyon, who hit six consecutive shots in the opening half and wound up with four assists and one steal while sparking the Terriers' stellar guard play.
``We remembered the scrimmage and I think we've gotten better since then,'' said the junior guard. ``We're ready for the region. Everybody was psyched.''
Byrd split two regular-season games with Martinsville, which had a first-round bye.
``They're good,'' Runyon said. ``They have good guards, but we match up well with them.''
Richard Thrasher, the Terriers' coach, said his team had one of its best quarters in the opening eight minutes.
Byrd hit eight of 17 field-goal attempts and used a press to force 14 turnovers. The Terriers led 18-2 after one quarter and the Minettes, after missing 11 shots, scored from the field on a follow shot by Felecia Miller with 3 minutes, 16 seconds left in the half to make it 33-4.
``They're a much better team. Maybe they had the first-game jitters,'' Thrasher said. ``We'll have to play much better to beat Martinsville.''
The Terriers connected on 27 of 64 shots. Byrd's Cathy Smith led both teams with 17 points and added 10 rebounds, four steals and three assists. Kim Kendrick also had a good night, hitting five of seven from the field on the way to a 14-point game. She also led in steals with five.
Liberty's Sue Cowlbeck, a sophomore, scored 12 points and hauled in a game-high 13 rebounds as the Minettes controlled the boards 49-40.
by CNB