Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, November 12, 1995 TAG: 9511130104
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
The Terriers beat Lord Botetourt 51-45 for their third victory over the Cavaliers this season. In the process, Byrd added the tournament title to its regular season crown.
This time, Byrd (22-2) didn't need any last-second heroics used in the first two victories.
The Terriers' defense shut down Botetourt inside, and point guard Kelli Runyon made sure the Cavaliers played Byrd's deliberate tempo.
Then there was sophomore Brandy Allen, who scored 18 points, blocked three shots and hauled down nine rebounds to dominate inside. She started early with eight of Byrd's 10 first-quarter points.
Byrd's zone frustrated Sarah Hicks just as it had in the last meeting when the 6-foot junior went scoreless from the field and had only six points. This time, Hicks managed to score from the field, but she was held to 12 points, which is 10 below her average.
``Our plan was to cover Hicks as much as we could,'' Byrd coach Richard Thrasher said. ``She's very good, so we tried to jam her and keep her from making the good move to the basket.''
On offense, Byrd was deliberate and went to Allen, Kristi Dyer and Cathy Smith inside. That trio accounted for 32 points and 20 rebounds.
``Coach Thrasher told us [the Cavaliers] want to play a fast game, so we didn't rush the ball as we had before [in the first game],'' said Runyon, who had 10 points, five assists and five steals.
Allen's success came partly because Botetourt concentrated on Smith, who is Byrd's scoring leader.
``We knew they'd play her really hard. So we worked for the other opening inside. We knew if we could get inside, we had a good height advantage,'' said Allen, one of two Terrier six-footers.
Allen hit 7-of-12 field-goal attempts, and Byrd shot well (19-of-38). The Terriers committed 35 turnovers, which came from the Cavaliers' pressure defense. Botetourt couldn't take advantage of the mistakes, though, as the Cavaliers made only 15-of-56 field-goal attempts.
Botetourt's Sara Moore, who led all scorers with 21 points, said Byrd's strategy wasn't unexpected.
``We worked on an offense for that defense,'' Moore said. ``But I guess it just didn't work out for us.''
Moore hit 6 of 10 field-goal attempts, but with Hicks shut down except for four blocks on defense, she was Botetourt's only weapon.
When Byrd went up 28-27 in the third quarter on Runyon's jumper that started a 10-0 Terrier run, Moore was having difficulty getting a shot. Then she hit two 3-pointers to bring Botetourt back to 42-38 with 5:52 left, but the Cavaliers (20-4) never came closer.
``We didn't execute offensively,'' said Botetourt coach David Wheat. ``When we did, we scored. But at times, if the first shot wasn't there, we forced it. We didn't play with any continuity.''
Both teams are in this week's Region III tournament at Byrd. Lord Botetourt plays Brookville in an opening round game Tuesday, and Byrd gets a bye and meets the winner of Tuesday's game between Liberty and Fieldale-Collinsville for a spot in the Group AA state tournament.
Pioneer District
Parry McCluer 54, Glenvar 32: Lindsey Coleman and Chrystal Humphries teamed up to score 24 of Parry McCluer's 37 second-half points as the Fighting Blues whipped Glenvar 54-32 to win the tournament championship at Dabney Lancaster Community College.
Coleman scored 13 of her 15 points and hit all three of her 3-pointers in the third quarter as the Fighting Blues (14-6) opened up a 16-point lead.
Humphries controlled the fourth quarter, scoring 11 of her 15 in the final period and hitting 7 of 9 free-throw attempts.
Glenvar (16-7) was led by Erica Hale, who scored 12 points.
Seminole District
Liberty 71, Jefferson Forest 59: Sue Cowlbeck scored 24 points and pulled down 24 rebounds to lead Liberty past Jefferson Forest in the championship game at Liberty University's Vines Center.
The Minettes will meet Fieldale-Collinsville at William Byrd in the first round of the Region III playoffs on Tuesday.
The Minettes sank 31 of 38 free-throw attempts, 17-of-19 in the decisive fourth quarter when they outscored the Cavaliers 23-13.
Jefferson Forest was just 14-of-27 from the line.
Felicia Miller added 18 points for Liberty, while Charity Bryant had 12 and Kellea Whorley 10.
Melinda Minnick scored 16 points to pace the Cavaliers, and Meredith Wilson added 12.
Piedmont District
Fieldale-Collinsville 68, Martinsville 59: Rayni Cooke scored eight of her 10 points in a big second quarter as Fieldale-Collinsville used balanced scoring to upset Martinsville to win the tournament championship in Ridgeway.
The Cavaliers (19-7) outscored the Bulldogs 26-11 in the second quarter to take control of the game. Yvonne Hall and T.J. Hayes led the Cavaliers, which had lost to Martinsville three times this season, with 17 points each. Jennifer Whitt added 10.
Martinsville (20-5) used an 11-0 run to start the fourth quarter to get back into the game but could get no closer. The Bulldogs were led by Erica Brandon, who scored 17.
Keshia Mitchell added 14 points, and Tresita Holland chipped in 11.
Both teams advance to the Region III tournament next week.
see microfilm for box score
by CNB