By Blake Colston
Sports Editor
SHAWNEE – Emma Stover caught the ball near the top of the 3-point arc and dribbled right. The game and, potentially, Okarche’s season hung in the balance.
With only five seconds remaining and the Lady Warriors trailing Vanoss 47-46, Stover got to the block and put up a shot that banked off the backboard.
“It’s so big that you have a player that’s willing to take that shot and live with it going in or missing it,” Okarche head coach Haley Mitchel said.
Stover’s shot hit the glass, crawled over the rim and dropped through to lift the fifth-ranked Lady Warriors to a dramatic Area championship game victory over the Lady Wolves. Most importantly, the win sent No. 7 Okarche back to the state tournament yet again.
“Emma stepped up huge for us,” Mitchel said of her senior forward who scored a game-high 23 points. “She scored really well down the stretch and had the confidence in herself.”
On the Lady Wolves’ final possession, Scout Payne and Ruby Vandendriessche trapped a Vanoss dribbler near half court and forced a turnover to seal the win.
Mitchel told Payne to be ready to guard the ball on the Lady Wolves’ final chance and played her role perfectly.
“I was so proud of her for being in the right place,” Mitchel said.
Stover’s bucket capped a big comeback by the Lady Warriors, who trailed third-ranked Vanoss (24-3) by as many as 14 points in the first half. Okarche lost to the Lady Wolves in last season’s Area title game and had circled a potential rematch before the playoffs got underway.
“The girls wanted to play Vanoss. That was a big one for them,” Mitchel said.
Senior Jalie Rother added eight points for Okarche (23-5) who will take on No. 6 Cyril (24-4) in its state tournament opener Wednesday night at 6 inside State Fair Arena.
“I feel like we’re playing our best basketball right now and that’s all you can hope for,” Mitchel said. ”
The winner of Okarche-Cyril will face either top-ranked Seiling (24-1) or unranked Quinton (23-6) on Friday.
