ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, October 30, 1996 TAG: 9610300069
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: DALEVILLE
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
MEMO: ***CORRECTION***
Published correction ran on Nov. 1
The Northside-Lord Botetourt junior varsity girls' basketball score
in Wednesday's edition was incorrect. Northside defeated Lord Botetourt,
48-23.
After Lord Botetourt had played around with Northside for nearly three quarters, Cavaliers guard Sara Moore had seen enough.
Realizing the defending Group AA girls' basketball champions were at a crossroads in their season, the senior took control for the last 9 minutes, 18 seconds. Lord Botetourt needed it as the Cavaliers pulled away from the Vikings to win 49-38 and clinch at least a tie for the Blue Ridge District regular-season title.
Lord Botetourt (19-1 overall, 12-1 in the district) needs only a victory over Christiansburg or a William Byrd loss at Alleghany on Thursday to clinch a return trip to the Region III tournament. If that happens, the Cavaliers will need to win only one Region III game to secure a return trip to the state tournament.
For a while Tuesday, the home crowd had to wonder whether Lord Botetourt would be able to overcome Northside's defense. The Vikings' zone had virtually rendered Sarah Hicks a non-factor on offense as she was on the way to tying her career low at Botetourt with six points.
Katrina Elliott's eight points kept Lord Botetourt in the game early. With the score tied, Moore took over. Her steal and layup made it 27-25 with 1:18 left in the third quarter. The Cavaliers would not trail again. She stole the ball again and drew a fourth foul against the Vikings' 6-foot Crystal Barrett, forcing Northside's leading scorer to the bench.
Takisha Basham's basket gave Botetourt a four-point lead at the quarter. Then, two assists by Moore set up another basket by Basham and one by Aimee Bird to help Botetourt stretch the lead to 33-28. After that, Moore hit a 3-point shot and five of six free throws as Botetourt pulled away.
``It's not taking over a game. I just find a way to make something happen when the team needs me,'' Moore said.
``She would not lose. She found a way to win,'' said David Wheat, Botetourt's coach.
Moore, though, knew when the game was coming her way. ``I can feel my adrenaline pumping,'' she said. ``I was getting after it a little more at that time.''
Moore wound up with a game-high 20 points as she hit four of seven from the field and 11 of 12 from the free-throw line. The rest of the Cavaliers made only 11 of 32 field-goal attempts, which shows how important Moore's offense was.
``I thought Northside played a good game, and the longer they stay with you, then anything can happen,'' Wheat said.
Marilyn Bussey, the Vikings' longtime coach, said turnovers really hurt her team. ``They all seemed to come at one time in a spurt,'' she said. ``And of course we had people in foul trouble.''
There was no special defense for Hicks, who saw a few of her shots rim out. The 6-2 center was forced to stay outside, though she still managed 11 rebounds.
``The first game, we played a lot of man-to-man, so we switched to a zone'' on Tuesday night,'' Bussey said. ``Our defensive effort was good.''
The Vikings (15-4, 10-3) are out of the district race and likely will have to get past William Byrd to make the Region III tournament. Barrett had 13 points and 12 rebounds to lead Northside, and Rosse' Hopkins had 10 points - eight in the second quarter.
The Vikings, though, made only 13 of 51 shots from the field and had eight turnovers in the third period when the game swung toward Botetourt.
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: NHAT MEYER/Staff. Takisha Basham of Lord Botetourt putsby CNBup a shot over Northside defender Rosse' Hopkins in the second
quarter on Tuesday in Daleville.