The Yellow Jackettes stingers ricocheted off the iron 48 times as Trinity Christian warded off the attacks to claim the Region II Championship 44-24 in Morgantown on Wednesday night to earn a spot at the state tournament in Charleston.
Moorefield battled throughout the game with intensity and hustle, yet couldn’t buy a basket as the ball bounced off the rim on 41 field goal attempts and seven free throws (9-of-16) causing a loss just shy of the state tournament goal.
“Shooting the basketball put us behind all night. We battled in there and got it back to 14-10 at the half, but we came out and it was the same thing,” Moorefield Coach Paul Keplinger remarked.
“We couldn’t make foul shots, layups or jump shots. It wasn’t just one aspect, it was all shooting. They came out and hustled, played hard the whole game. We just couldn’t buy a bucket. That was the key to the whole game.”
Despite the dismal shooting and falling behind 8-nil out of the gate, the Yellow Jackettes would buzz back to pull within four points at halftime trailing the Lady Warriors 14-10.
Trinity Christian (13-12) commandeered a 12-0 run in the third period and shielded the hoop from the swarm surrounding the court in spite of their own struggles missing 31 field goals and going 17-of-33 from the free throw line.
There were a couple of walks to begin the championship, then Lady Warriors senior Emily Saurborn garnered a defensive rebound and drilled a 3-pointer for the initial lead at the 6:50 mark.
The Trinity Christian student section was given a warning for being too close to Moorefield’s Lindsey Rinker on an inbound play after a foul.
Moorefield (12-13) missed another shot and Trinity Christian’s Rachel Rosen snatched her first of 13 rebounds on the night and was two points shy of a double-double (8).
After a jump ball, Moorefield applied pressure and the Lady Warriors missed a shot with it deflecting off the Yellow Jackettes out of bounds.
Trinity Christian’s Reagan Sharp drew a foul from Moorefield’s Gianna Fair and would make both free throws en route to scoring a game-high 19 points in the championship win.
“It’s really exciting, the girls have worked hard all season. When I took over a couple of years ago, it was a team that was learning and we set some goals that we wanted to be a team going to Charleston in a few years. It is happening and it is really exciting,” Trinity Christian Coach Mike Baldy commented.
“We think highly of Moorefield and they have a lot of tough girls and he rotates them well and keeps them fresh. We knew that’s what they were going to give us early, so we did some press. To be honest, I’m not sure we got their ball handlers in the backcourt. Ultimately we played excellent man-to-man defense and that reflects in us holding them to 24 points. I’m really happy with holding them low. We have a couple of players that will themselves to the hoop and we have others coming around them to make them better. It is an exciting time right now. [Reagan Sharp] She has giant heart. We just ask her to get to the hoop and she does it. Kerry Woods was our coach and is our athletic director now, he laid the groundwork for our program and it is exciting to share this with him.”
Pressure by the Lady Warriors forced a timeout and the next shot was off the mark with Kaylie Laskody redirecting the ball off the rim to Saurborn.
The Yellow Jackettes regained possession on a defensive rebound by Madison McGregor, but was tied up immediately by Rosen with the arrow staying with Moorefield.
Moorefield hit the rim and Fair went for the rebound, but it was stolen by Rosen and she stepped out.
Moorefield senior Nautica Crosco cut into the paint and was fouled by Rosen, but couldn’t connect on the free throws.
A rebound attempt by Moorefield’s Remi Hinkle eluded her grasp as Trinity Christian’s Jaclyn Smith snatched the turnover leaping along the baseline for a save, but the Lady Warriors walked just as a 3-pointer went in the hoop.
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Saurborn swiped the ball and was fouled by Rinker, then notched the first of two free throws and Smith got the board before walking.
Smith collected another rebound adding up to nine overall, then McGregor forced a jump ball.
Rosen scored on a putback to create an 8-nil advantage for the Lady Warriors at the 3:31 mark.
Trinity Christian’s Katie Dlugos snatched a defensive rebound and Moorefield’s Anna Riggleman wrapped up the ball for a jump ball situation.
The Yellow Jackettes failed to inbound in the allotted five seconds and Trinity Christian took over, then McGregor fouled Dlugos and neither free throw dropped.
Rinker collected the rebound and the Yellow Jackettes lost the ball out of bounds under pressure of Kaylie Laskody.
Fair grabbed a defensive rebound, but Moorefield missed the next shot attempt and the Lady Warriors came away with the ball before Anna Riggleman stole it back for the Yellow Jackettes only to lose it moments later to Smith and commit a foul.
McGregor forced a jump ball after an errant basket by Trinity Christian, then Fair blocked a shot.
Fair snatched the ensuing rebound and passed to Emma Baker, who found McGregor for a 3-pointer to put Moorefield on the scoreboard with 1:29 remaining in the first period.
Rosen responded with a short range jumper, then waited to make a block after a stalling tactic by Moorefield.
Rosen and Fair made defensive rebounds, then the Yellow Jackettes missed one more shot before the buzzer.
It took nearly three minutes for the first basket of the second period to be made and it was a jumper by Sharp just over Riggleman at the 5:16 mark.
During the drought, the Yellow Jackettes ricocheted the ball off the iron four times, Rinker stole the ball and Crosco stood in position to take a charge, meanwhile Trinity Christian missed two shots and Rosen swiped the ball in addition to a pair of fouls on both teams.
Baker and Hinkle kept the possession alive after the score by Sharp, then Laskody blocked a shot.
Moorefield recovered as Rinker nailed a mid-range jumper at the 4:30 mark, trailing 12-5.
Baker fielded a defensive board, then assisted McGregor on a basket.
Rinker snatched a defensive rebound and made a no-look pass to Riggleman for a layup at 3:24 which cut the deficit down to 12-9.
After a timeout, Riggleman hauled in a defensive rebound and it was stolen by Saurborn seeking to make a breakaway layup as McGregor tracked her down to block the ball along with a little contact for a foul and one free throw was added.
Over the next minute, there was a jump ball, a miss by Trinity Christian with a rebound by Smith and a steal by Baker, then Rosen blocked Rinker with Riggleman creating a save on the ricochet with the ball caught by Smith.
Rinker fouled Saurborn, who sank one free throw and Riggleman grabbed the rebound, 14-9 at 1:49.
The Yellow Jackettes missed two more buckets, then Rosen collected the carom and the press by Baker forced a walk.
Rinker’s pass was intercepted by Trinity Christian’s Gracie Emery and Baker committed Moorefield’s ninth team foul and Sharp missed the one-and-one with the rebound going to Rosen with an errant attempt and Baker found the ball.
Moorefield couldn’t connect and Rosen hauled in the rebound, then the Lady Warriors drew iron and Riggleman grabbed the rebound.
Smith fouled Riggleman, who made one free throw for the Yellow Jackettes with 12 seconds left in the first half to create a 14-10 halftime score with both teams hitting the rim again prior to the break.
Opening the second half, the Lady Warriors missed a bucket and Crosco took a face plant trying to make the rebound with the deflection going to Sharp before Fair swatted the ball and Baker recovered it.
Rosen deflected a pass and Crosco corralled the ball, but was called for a walk.
Crosco and Smith made defensive rebounds, then Trinity Christian walked.
Sharp zeroed in for a board and scored on the next possession for a 16-10 edge at the 6:15 mark which sparked a 12-0 run.
Smith garnered a defensive rebound and fed Saurborn for a layup, then Sharp stole the ball leading to a couple of missed opportunities kept alive by Smith and Sharp before a foul sent Smith to the line for a pair of foul shots.
Laskody swiped the ball along the sideline and after two missed attempts and a foul, the Lady Warriors were able to get the ball in the net on a jumper by Laskody at the 4:50 mark for a 22-10 advantage.
After a timeout, Moorefield missed a field goal and Saurborn took the rebound with a pass to Rosen for a jumper.
Rosen swiped the ball and dished to Saurborn for a bucket to garner a 26-10 lead at 3:41.
Other timeout was called to stop the momentum, then Baker drove inside the paint and the dribble was deflected away by Smith.
Smith fouled Rinker, who netted one of two free throws as Moorefield stopped the run at 2:59.
Rosen grabbed an offensive rebound and Hinkle knocked the ball loose with the ricochet fielded by Crosco, who was fouled.
A missed shot went off of Crosco out of bounds, then McGregor fouled Laskody and neither free throw was made.
Rinker collected the board and assisted Crosco on a layup for a 26-13 score with 2:15 remaining in the third period.
Hinkle blocked a shot, then the Lady Warriors got the ball wedged between the rim and backboard.
A fourth foul by McGregor led to one free throw from Smith, then the Lady Warriors pressure with a trap forced a ten-second violation.
Baker’s defense created a five-second violation, then Sharp tied up Moorefield’s Gracie O’Neill for a jump ball.
The inbound pass went through the fingers of Baker to the bench and it appeared frustration was setting in on the Yellow Jackettes.
That wasn’t the case as Crosco stayed aggressive on defense with a pass deflection, then Rinker blocked a shot attempt.
After a Moorefield foul, Sharp hauled in an offensive rebound and the ball was stolen by O’Neill and Crosco before being snatched back by Saurborn.
O’Neill collected a defensive rebound, then Smith did the same for Trinity Christian.
Both teams were called for walks, then Fair made her fourth foul and the Lady Warriors failed to score.
O’Neill made the rebound, then Rinker was whistled for a double-dribble and the quarter ended with a defensive rebound by O’Neill.
Laskody garnered an offensive rebound to start the final stanza with a save going to Rosen for a basket at 7:49 which provided the Lady Warriors with a 29-13 advantage.
The Yellow Jackettes missed five consecutive baskets with Baker snatching three of the rebounds including one on a diving play for the loose ball and finally scoring a layup at 6:43.
Crosco and Baker tag teamed a steal, but the ensuing shot went off the rim and Rosen grabbed the rebound in traffic.
During the pressure, there was a collision with Saurborn coming down awkwardly and leaving the game with an injury.
Crosco went for a steal chasing the ball to the corner of the court, but stepped out of bounds.
Rosen lost the ball out of bounds, then Smith made a defensive rebound and passed to Sharp for a layup.
Rinker drove into the paint and netted a basket plus the harm with the free throw hitting the rim as the Yellow Jackettes cut the deficit to 31-17 with 5:43 remaining.
Rinker and Crosco made rebounds with the latter ricochet going out of bounds off of Trinity Christian.
Moorefield failed to connect again an Rosen got the board.
Sharp was fouled and made both free throws at the 5:22 mark.
Over the next minute, Sharp hit three foul shots and Rinker made a pair from the line as the Lady Warriors built a 36-19 advantage with just over four minutes to go.
Moorefield’s Ciara Smith made a block and steal, but no score came as a result.
Smith made a save off the miss and the throw was intercepted by smith leading to a basket by Sharp.
After a walk by the Yellow Jackettes, Crosco deflected a pass out of bounds.
Laskody snatched a rebound, then Rinker stole the ball and was fouled which created an opportunity for two free throws, 38-21 at 2:59.
Six seconds later, Sharp made an old-fashioned three-point play for the Lady Warriors.
Crosco and Baker added one free throw apiece over the next 23 seconds for Moorefield.
Down the stretch, Sharp added three out of six free throws and the last point scored was a foul shot by O’Neill for the Yellow Jackettes with 36 seconds left for a final score of 44-24.
“It’s a huge deal for us. At the beginning of the season, it was our goal to go to states. We said we would be happy to win a few games, but our end goal was to go to states and we accomplished that today,” Trinity Christian junior Reagan Sharp stated.
“I am doing what I can to help our team and the rest of our team stepped up and we played good defense. We held them to 24 points, so defense wins the game. We played harder and we had nothing to lose. We knew if we lost, this would be our last game and we didn’t want to end it for our senior Emily [Saurborn] and just keep playing. We’ve bonded a lot together and there is a huge age gap, but our freshman have been real supportive and stepped up big in games.”
Trinity Christian was led by Sharp with 19 points, followed by Saurborn with ten points.
The Yellow Jackettes were guided by Rinker with nine points and six rebounds, followed by McGregor with five points, plus Baker, Crosco and Riggleman added three points and five rebounds apiece.
“Sorry for Nautica [Crosco], we couldn’t get her to Charleston. We rely on her defense and speed, we will miss her. The girls played hard from start to finish and didn’t want to quit, even at the end looking at the scoreboard and still fighting,” Coach Keplinger concluded.
“They’ve had a tough ten day stretch and they nail it. It is heartbreaking, missing shots changes the whole complexion of the game and we could concentrate on half court defense. We just couldn’t put the ball in the basket on the other end. I am proud of everybody, but they all need to pick up a basketball during the off-season and get in the weight room to get strong. It came down to shooting tonight. We had some really good looks at the basket and even if we rebounded, we couldn’t put it in the hole. Sometimes it is the funk you’re in and we will have to come back next year. They need to get a taste of Charleston to change their perspective.”
Moorefield played with tremendous heart and determination, but wasn’t able to get the ball into the hoop enough times to make a difference and sadly ended the season just short of reaching the state tournament as the wait since 2003 is extended.
Tucker County enters the state tournament for the 14th consecutive season after defeating Notre Dame and joins the Lady Warriors as the Region II co-champion representatives in Charleston.
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