
Bill Lusk | WVOW Sports
WILLIAMSTOWN A lot can happen in 14 hours.
Fourteen hours after an embarrassing 43-point loss to the Parkersburg South Lady Patriots at Parkersburg South High School, the Chapmanville Lady Tigers rebounded with a come-from-behind 48-45 win over Class AA No. 2 Williamstown Saturday afternoon at Williamstown High School.
"We faced a really tough Parkersburg South team 14 hours ago and put on our worst performance of the season. We got absolutely hammered. It was not a good night. Morale was low, and tensions were high," Chapmanville coach Kristiana Gore said. "Our captains and our staff had an extremely meaningful coming to Jesus conversation at the hotel after the game. I needed to hear what they had to say, and vice-versa. I credit those kids and that conversation for the win today."
The Lady Tigers, playing with just six players, kept things close throughout the first half and trailed by just three, 20-17, at halftime. Chapmanville tied it at 31 after three quarters and made enough plays down the stretch in the fourth quarter, knocking down key free throws and coming with defensive stops to pull off the upset victory.
Laken Parks hit free throws to give Chapmanville a 48-45 lead with 0:05 remaining leaving Gore with a decision to make before Williamstown inbounded the basketball.
With a foul to give would Chapmanville foul or let Williamstown have a shot at a 3-pointer to force overtime, Gore choose to play it out as a last second 3 feel short of the mark as the buzzer sounded.
"Our late game execution was almost perfect. We hit four big free throws down the stretch. Laken hitting the last two to give us the three-point lead with five seconds to go was huge," Gore said. "We did have a foul to give on the last play and wanted to use it as they crossed half court before the shot, but we missed her."
"Just thankful that she missed the heave at the buzzer, and we got out of there with a quality win," Gore said. "Really proud of all six that touched the floor today. They all showed a lot of heart. The bench also did a great job staying engaged."
Fleming led the way with a game-high, while Christian added 16 points including a pair of fourth quarter 3-pointers in the win.
"Brooke was clutch today and has been all season. We knew there was a chance they would end up going triangle and two on our guards," Gore said. "Right after they did, Brooke knocked down two huge threes in the fourth quarter."
Quinn Bunch led Williamstown (9-3) with 17 points, all coming in the second half, and Faith Pickens added 14, 11 of those coming in the first quarter, but was held scoreless until converting a 3-point play in the fourth quarter.
"We were flat out gritty today, and we showed that we wanted it more. We were already small coming into the season, but with Tayli (Smith) out I’ve got my point guard (Haley Fleming) down there battling with Faith Pickens," Gore said. “Pickens (is) a head taller and is one of the most dominant offensive post players in the state regardless of class. For as small as we are, I think our physicality really surprised them."
Gracie Montgomery had five, Resse Boone four, Annabelle Haught three and Anna Cosner two for the Yellowjackets.
Daizi Farley finished with six, Parks five and Savannah Kirk two for Chapmanville.
The win snapped a four-game losing streak and moved the Lady Tigers to 6-6 on the season.
Chapmanville hopes to build on its big win Saturday afternoon when they host county rival and Class AA No. 8 Logan, who defeated the Lady Tigers, 47-33, on December 21 in the King Coal Classic at Willie Akers Arena.
“This one ranks at the top for me as far as wins go. We’ve had some big postseason wins the past couple of years that have really elevated our program, but this one has to be the most special," Gore said. "We’ll see how things turn out come March, but us coming together the way we did in that meeting just might be what turns the tide in our favor the rest of this season.”
Comments