Staff writer
The Marion High School girls basketball team defeated Council Grove Friday at Council Grove, 33-31.
The Warriors took their second lead with 5 minutes 8 seconds left in the fourth quarter on a Megan Richmond free throw, 26-25.
After a Braves basket, Whitney Gordon scored a contested layup on the right-side low block to put Marion back in front 28-27. Two possessions later, Gordon scored again on a short jump shot after gathering in an offensive rebound.
Council Grove missed another shot and Katey Ehrlich brought down the defensive board and was promptly fouled. The Braves had already accumulated 10 fouls when Ehrlich hit the second of two free throws to put the Warriors up, 31-27.
Council Grove forward Jordan Jimmerson sank a layup on the other end of the court with 2:11 left in the game. The Warriors turned the ball over and then fouled a Brave on the ensuing breakaway. They committed the foul on the floor and the Braves inbounded. Morgan Chad found an open spot in the left corner, hitting a long 2-pointer to tie the game, 31-31.
Marion had one close call in their own end when a Council Grove steal was transformed into a tie-up that gave the Warriors the ball. Then, Gordon missed a turnaround jump shot from the left post, but Ehrlich was available to clean up the miss and she was fouled after gathering the offensive rebound. She hit the second of two free throws to give the Warriors the lead 32-31.
The Braves quickly passed in the ball. The Warriors pressure had been forcing Council Grove guards to dribble along the sidelines in the second half. In a slight adjustment, Erin Meierhoff waited for the Council Grove point guard to carry the ball up the right sideline. She planted her feet and the Brave guard bowled her over. It was called a clean charge and Marion regained possession of the ball.
“I knew she was going to drive up the sideline,” Meierhoff said. “We’ve been trying to work on (taking charges) in practice. I had nothing to lose.”
Gordon received the inbounds pass and was fouled before even having a chance to dribble. She hit the first of two free throws to put the Warriors up, 33-31.
“That was who we wanted going to shoot,” coach Randy Savage said.
While the Warriors had a strangle hold on the momentum, the Braves were only down 2 points with 19.5 seconds left.
With the ball, Council Grove looked for a 3-point opportunity to win the game. In a flash on along the 3-point arc, the ball was freed from its Brave possessor and was scooped up by Meierhoff who raced up the middle of the court in an attempt to ice the game with a fast break layup. She was fouled hard in the act of shooting but she missed both free throws.
The Braves were only left with 3 seconds on the clock and forced a shot from beyond the half-court line.
“It felt really good to win,” Meierhoff said. “It was stressful.”
In a testament to most valuable player status among Warriors, Gordon was instrumental in the Marion comeback that erased a 9-point deficit in the third quarter.
Picking up her third foul with 3:13 left in the first quarter, Gordon sat on the bench for the remainder of the first half. When she left the game, the Warriors committed four consecutive turnovers; they committed 14 turnovers in the first half.
Without Gordon’s offensive arsenal of post moves, jump shots, and drives, Marion players struggled to bring the ball past the 3-point line. Sarah Guetersloh hit a layup and Emily Hett hit a free throw for the Warriors only points of the second quarter. They were down 17-8 at halftime.
“It could have been worse,” Savage said.
Surrounded by a lineup of Meierhoff, Ehrlich, Richmond, and Kaelyn Thierolf, Gordon poured in 9 points in the third quarter. She finished 14 points, 14 rebounds, and 5 blocked shots, most of which were amassed in the second half.
“It makes a big difference when Whitney is in there,” Savage said.
The lineup Savage employed for much of the third quarter featured a junior, a sophomore, and three freshmen. The young squad sped up the Council Grove guards with full-court pressure.
“That gave us a lot of speed,” Savage said of choosing that lineup. “That kind of wore them down.”
Foregoing the usual end of game speech, Savage told the team that they played a good second half and then let the girls watch Council Grove’s winter homecoming ceremony between games.
“Sometimes it’s nice if you just shut up and get out of the way,” Savage said.