Saturday morning, the Lakeview Honkers took on the Standfield Tigers in the 2A girls’ consolation finals.
Lakeview battled back from a 7-point deficit at halftime to force an overtime period. In overtime, the Honkers edged out the Tigers 48-41.
The game was a battle of wills between balanced and deliberate Stanfield and the dynamic and powerful Lakeview. For most of the first half, Stanfield controlled the pace of the game and had significant offensive contributions from Zuri Reeser, Alexis Shelby, Mazie Reeser, and Maggie Sharp.
Zuri Reeser had a slew of athletic floaters while Shelby provided outside shooting and power to the attack. On the inside, Mazie Reeser and Sharp gave Lakeview difficulties. Stanfield shot 46% in the first half.
Lakeview struggled to match Stanfield at the slower pace, but their press was led to fast-break opportunities. However, the slower pace restricted Laeview’s offense, who shot a mere 22%.
Out of the break, Kenna Stratton took over the game for Lakeview. A woman on a mission, Stratton scored 11 points on 10 shots in the second half and secured 5 steals.
”I knew that my errors needed to stop. We came together as a family and played with grit,” Stratton commented after the game.
Stanfield struggled to stop Lakeview’s pick and roll offense and did not adjust to the faster pace of Lakeview. The Honkers forced 13 turnovers in the second half, leading to 26 points off of turnovers in the game.
With 1:33 remaining in regulation, Sharp drove confidently to the hoop and scored to put Stanfield up by 1 point. When Lakeview missed a shot to go ahead, Karlee Vickerman hauled in an offensive rebound and was fouled - she hit 1 of 2 free throws to tie the game. Each team would get a chance to win the game, but neither shot fell; forcing the game to overtime.
Stanfield struck first in overtime, going ahead by as much as 4 with 2:28 to play, but Stratton scored 5 points. Stanfield fouled Vickerman to extend the game, but she hit all 6 free throws to secure the game for Lakeview.
“[Stratton] Hadn’t had her ‘coming out’ game yet. It was great to see her show up like she did,” Lakeview coach Cody Blair said afterwards.
Stanfield earned themselves a 6th-place finish at state and returns much of their roster for next season.
With the win, the Honkers earned the 4th-place trophy to cap their successful season. Lakeview returns all of theif roster as they make the jump up to the 3A-level next season. “People better watch out because we‘re coming in hot. We will be dangerous,” said Stratton.
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