Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Wolverettes Fall In Regionals; Finish Third

Traci Graham put on an offensive display during the Region 4 AAA Regional Basketball Tournament, scoring 105 points in three games.

However, the Prescott Wolverettes wound up finishing third in the tourney after sandwiching two good games around a clunker in their second outing.

Prescott's first victim was an old foe, Drew Central's Lady Pirates, and the Wolverettes posted a 75-67 win Thursday afternoon at Fordyce.

The Lady 'Bucs led at the end of each of the first three quarters and looked as if they were going to end Prescott's season for good.

Prescott found itself on the short end of a 24-23 score at the end of one and trailed 45-37 at halftime.

The Lady 'Bucs continued leading in the third with a 61-54 advantage.

However, enough was enough for the Wolverettes, who caught fire in the final eight minutes offensively, while the defense was all but impenetrable. The Wolverettes outscored Drew Central 21-6 in the fourth quarter to advance to round two Friday afternoon.

Graham began her offensive display with 35 to lead all scorers in this game, including six three-pointers. Andrea Cossey netted 23, with five treys to her stats.

Cooper led Drew Central with 31. Burks added 11 and Chavis scored 10.

Prescott netted 18 of 25 free throws, while the Lady Pirates were a perfect six for six.

Game two saw a different Wolverette team take the floor as they locked horns with Star City's Lady Bulldogs.

Prescott's offense never got out of first gear, which allowed the Lady 'Dogs to post a 73- 57 win and knock the Wolverettes out of contention for the regional crown. Star City went on to win the tourney by beating Mena in overtime Saturday night.

Still, the Wolverettes had earned a berth in the state tournament with their win over Drew Central the day before.

The Lady 'Dogs fielded a tall team, and a team ready to play

The two crews played at a good pace with Star City opening scoring with a three pointer. Graham, who provided most of Prescott's offense, answered in kind to tie the game with 7:02 showing.

Cossey fired shot after shot during the game, but never found her shooting rhythm.

However, it came down to who shot best and was the more consistent. On this day, Star City proved the better of the two.

The Lady 'Dogs fired over Prescott's 2-3 zone and used their superior size inside to push Prescott players out of position on rebounds.

Graham nailed her first three shots in the game to keep Prescott close. With 5:13 showing the score was 9-5 Star City.

The period ended with Star City holding a 20-16 lead.

It was a quick period, taking a scant 16 minutes to complete. The entire game lasted an hour as the officials let both teams play.

Period two opened with Cossey firing a trey through the net to cut the lead to 20-19.

The Lady 'Dogs hit one of two free throws for a 21-19 lead, only to see the Wolverette offense heat up to score the next five points and go ahead 24-21 with 6:42 showing.

The Wolverettes looked to get their transition game going and run the legs off of Star City's players.

However, the Lady 'Dogs hadn't made the trip to Fordyce to have their ears scratched and be told they were good puppies.

From the 6:42 mark until there was 3:43 showing in the second, it was a back and forth game with neither team able to gain an advantage.

But, from 3:43 until halftime, the Lady 'Dogs began taking charge of the game and went to the lockers with a 36-31 lead.

The Wolverettes gave it everything they had to stay close in the third quarter, but made too many mental mistakes forcing them to turn the ball over.

While Prescott wanted to run and keep the game's pace fast, Star City managed to slow it down, work the clock and get good looks at the bucket.

The quarter ended with the Lady 'Dogs leading 49-42.

Star City began running in the fourth quarter, taking full advantage of being able to control the pace.

When the Wolverettes made a mistake, Star City made them pay for it and began pulling away.

Still, the Wolverettes didn't go quietly. Graham nailed an NBA-range three with 6:24 left in the game to cut the lead to 55-45.

However, Star City responded with a quick bucket and was fouled for an old fashioned three point play.

No matter what Prescott did in the fourth quarter Star City had an answer for it and was able to give the Wolverettes their fourth loss of the year.

Graham led the pack with 29 points, while Cossey added 14. In the game Graham hit five three pointers, while Cossey added four.

Adams led Star City with 24, while Attmow scored 18 and Austin had 11.

Prescott hit two of its three free throws, while Star City connected on seven of 19.

This set up a battle for third place between the Wolverettes and Fountain Lake's Lady Cobras Saturday afternoon.

It was a close game for eight minutes before the Wolverettes ran away with a 71-56 win.

Graham led the way with a career-high 41 points as the Lady Cobras pretty much left her alone throughout the game.

Prescott Coach Bill Cossey expected Fountain Lake to play them with a triangle-two defense as they had in the other meetings during the regular season.

However, he said, they came out guarding Cossey, leaving Graham alone for the most part. Cossey did achieve a career high 13 assists in the game to go with her nine points.

The Wolverettes played a consistent game for eight minutes, taking a 17-13 lead at the end of one.

Period two saw the Wolverettes unleash an offensive barrage. The assault left Fountain Lake reeling as the Lady Cobra game plan had fallen apart.

Halftime arrived with Prescott leading 41-28 and showing no signs of being merciful.

Mercy, though, was shown, but not intentionally, as the Lady Cobras struck in the third quarter, giving up six points, while adding 13 to their own score to make it 47-41 at the end of the period.

This didn't set well with the Wolverettes. So, in the final eight minutes, Prescott's offense again opened fire to blow the Lady Cobras away.

Jeania Haynie scored 19 for Prescott to go along with Graham's 41, which included five treys.

Bean led Fountain Lake with 18, while Thompson scored 15.

The Wolverettes were near perfect from the line, hitting 15 of 17 free throws, while Fountain Lake was also consistent with eight of 10.

The Wolverettes will travel to Clarkesville for a date against Pocahontas and the Lady Redskins in the first round of the state tournament.

Game time has been set at 4 p.m. at the College of the Ozarks gymnasium.