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Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
DODSONVILLE — The Lynchburg-Clay Lady Mustangs are set to face Wheelersburg in their Division III SE District Semifinal game, Monday at Waverly High School.
The winner goes to the district final at the Convocation Center at Ohio University.
The Lady Mustangs, a No. 6 seed, and the Lady Pirates, a No. 2 seed, haven't played since last Saturday, when they each won their sectional contest.
LC defeated the Adena Lady Warriors 53-47 in overtime, while Wheelersburg won their game against Wellston 49-28 at Rock Hill High School. The win by the Lady Pirates was their fifth straight sectional title. They last won a district title in 2008.
One advantage the Lady Mustangs have over Wheelersburg is their height. Post players Laney Lewis and Brooke Hertlein rule the post for LC.
"We will have a height advantage on the inside that needs to be the focus of our offense," LC head coach Tiffany Barnett said. "Both of our posts should have a pretty big mismatch. If we do this, it will open up a balanced inside/outside game for us again."
Barnett said she expects Wheelersburg to bring a 2-3 zone to be played in a half-court set, but they also do other things defensively, like a full-court zone press and a half-court zone trap.
Leading the Lady Pirates (15-6) is Erica Schmidt, No. 25. Schmidt scored 13 points in the sectional final game against Wellston. She was 5-of-9 from the free-throw line, along with 15 rebounds and two assists.
"(Erica) Schmidt is their best all-around player who is very athletic," Barnett said. "She shoots well and can drive with either hand."
As for Wheelersburg's team stats, their game against Wellston included a 15-of-48 shooting performance from the field (5-of-18 three-pointers), 44 rebounds and 14-of-27 from the free-throw line. They also scored in double figures all four quarters, never trailing in the game.
The leading scorer against Wellston for the Lady Pirates was Molly Knapp with 16 points, finishing 4-of-4 from the free-throw line.
"They (Wheelersburg) are quick. They run the ball off of missed shots well and score a lot of points in transition that way," Barnett said. "They seem to consistently score a lot of their points from threes. It is going to require us to have a great defensive ball game with good communication from the start. We need to box out and not give them as many second attempts as we did with Adena."
In terms of being like a team the Lady Mustangs have played this season, Barnett said they compare best to Fayetteville.
"I would say they seem like they do a lot of things like Fayetteville," Barnett said. "Fayetteville didn't have much height and ran a quick-paced game, but both teams play very well."
For LC (14-7), in their sectional final game against Adena, Hertlein led with 19 points and 19 rebounds, with teammates hitting big shots when they needed them to stay in the game, or to keep a lead.
Against Adena, Meredith Fittro and Hannah Blankenship each made three 3-pointers.
One thing Barnett wanted improvement on following the Adena game was defensive communication, saying she didn't think they communicated well, except in overtime, and that they needed to do that the entire game.
"We are working hard right now trying to stay focused on winning one game at a time," Barnett said. "I anticipate this to be a close one, but we all know that we can win. We are trying to work on what needs to be our strengths against them and on what they do to other teams."
LC and WHS are scheduled to tip-off at 8 p.m. at Waverly High School in the district semifinal, Monday, Feb. 28.
The winner of the LC-WHS game will face the winner of Minford and North Adams, which is the first game at Waverly on Monday.[[In-content Ad]]
The winner goes to the district final at the Convocation Center at Ohio University.
The Lady Mustangs, a No. 6 seed, and the Lady Pirates, a No. 2 seed, haven't played since last Saturday, when they each won their sectional contest.
LC defeated the Adena Lady Warriors 53-47 in overtime, while Wheelersburg won their game against Wellston 49-28 at Rock Hill High School. The win by the Lady Pirates was their fifth straight sectional title. They last won a district title in 2008.
One advantage the Lady Mustangs have over Wheelersburg is their height. Post players Laney Lewis and Brooke Hertlein rule the post for LC.
"We will have a height advantage on the inside that needs to be the focus of our offense," LC head coach Tiffany Barnett said. "Both of our posts should have a pretty big mismatch. If we do this, it will open up a balanced inside/outside game for us again."
Barnett said she expects Wheelersburg to bring a 2-3 zone to be played in a half-court set, but they also do other things defensively, like a full-court zone press and a half-court zone trap.
Leading the Lady Pirates (15-6) is Erica Schmidt, No. 25. Schmidt scored 13 points in the sectional final game against Wellston. She was 5-of-9 from the free-throw line, along with 15 rebounds and two assists.
"(Erica) Schmidt is their best all-around player who is very athletic," Barnett said. "She shoots well and can drive with either hand."
As for Wheelersburg's team stats, their game against Wellston included a 15-of-48 shooting performance from the field (5-of-18 three-pointers), 44 rebounds and 14-of-27 from the free-throw line. They also scored in double figures all four quarters, never trailing in the game.
The leading scorer against Wellston for the Lady Pirates was Molly Knapp with 16 points, finishing 4-of-4 from the free-throw line.
"They (Wheelersburg) are quick. They run the ball off of missed shots well and score a lot of points in transition that way," Barnett said. "They seem to consistently score a lot of their points from threes. It is going to require us to have a great defensive ball game with good communication from the start. We need to box out and not give them as many second attempts as we did with Adena."
In terms of being like a team the Lady Mustangs have played this season, Barnett said they compare best to Fayetteville.
"I would say they seem like they do a lot of things like Fayetteville," Barnett said. "Fayetteville didn't have much height and ran a quick-paced game, but both teams play very well."
For LC (14-7), in their sectional final game against Adena, Hertlein led with 19 points and 19 rebounds, with teammates hitting big shots when they needed them to stay in the game, or to keep a lead.
Against Adena, Meredith Fittro and Hannah Blankenship each made three 3-pointers.
One thing Barnett wanted improvement on following the Adena game was defensive communication, saying she didn't think they communicated well, except in overtime, and that they needed to do that the entire game.
"We are working hard right now trying to stay focused on winning one game at a time," Barnett said. "I anticipate this to be a close one, but we all know that we can win. We are trying to work on what needs to be our strengths against them and on what they do to other teams."
LC and WHS are scheduled to tip-off at 8 p.m. at Waverly High School in the district semifinal, Monday, Feb. 28.
The winner of the LC-WHS game will face the winner of Minford and North Adams, which is the first game at Waverly on Monday.[[In-content Ad]]