Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 27, 1994 TAG: 9402270131
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: D-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The Knights' persistence was rewarded as they rallied to beat Pulaski County 46-42 in the Roanoke Valley District girls' basketball tournament final Saturday at the Salem Civic Center.
More important than the title is the favorable draw Cave Spring (19-3) earned in the Northwestern Region tournament, beginning with a first-round home game Tuesday. Pulaski County will be on the road.
The Knights were down three points with a minute left and called a timeout to set their defense against the Cougars (17-6).
"The only people who believed that we could win were the people sitting on this bench," said Linda Long, Cave Spring's coach.
Pulaski County committed a quick turnover and the Knights got the ball to 6-foot-4 Lisa Bryan, who hit a layup and drew a foul. Going for the tie, the freshman missed and Pulaski County's Kara Buckner got the rebound.
Now it was up to Cave Spring's defense again. The Knights came through as Buckner was called for pushing off as she came up the floor under heavy pressure, giving Cave Spring another chance to take the lead.
Aimee Beightol drove the lane, drew the foul and with 14.5 seconds left hit two free throws to put Cave Spring ahead 43-42.
Then, Leah Daigle forced a turnover, giving the Knights the ball again.
"I came over to get the double-team and she dribbled the ball out of bounds," said the senior forward.
Beightol was fouled and hit one free throw with 8.2 seconds left. Her miss, though, was rebounded by Daigle and again Beightol was fouled. This time, she hit two free throws with 4.4 seconds left to clinch the victory.
Beightol was tough in the clutch, hitting five of six free throws in the final 1 minute, 5 seconds.
"It's a lot of pressure," said the junior, who had 20 points and five assists. "But we practice special situations all the time. We've had a couple of close games and there was no way we could let this one slip away."
"Cave Spring has improved as the season has gone on," said Rod Reedy, whose Pulaski County team has won three of the five games between the two teams this season.
"We won two real close games against them and maybe it was their turn."
Last-minute heroics notwithstanding, this game had a lot of twists and turns.
First, Cave Spring playmaker Allison Beightol reinjured a dislocated shoulder that had bothered her since the summer. She returned to the lineup in the second half, but while she was out, Aimee Beightol made two key 3-point shots in the second quarter as the Knights took a 21-20 halftime lead.
"I had to step up while she was out. I don't always shoot that well from the outside, but I had to keep shooting and hope they would fall," Aimee Beightol said.
When Allison Beightol went out, Emily Rappold stepped in and responded with two big baskets in the first half. Then, Allison Beightol returned to play much of the second half and hit a key bucket in the fourth quarter.
"I just didn't know if Allison could come back," Long said. "I had to keep watching her, and Emily did a good job stepping in."
The Knights also kept Pulaski County's Jodie Hallett, the district's player of the year, from dominating. Hallett scored 16 points and had nine rebounds, but she had to work for everything.
"Cave Spring did a good job of collapsing on her from the perimeter," Reedy said. "She got a lot of attention."
Neither team shot particularly well. The Knights connected on 19 of 52 field-goal attempts, but did make five of nine in the final quarter. The Cougars were 13-of-40 and lost the battle on the boards 34-33 as Cheryl Rhodes picked up nine rebounds for Cave Spring.
by CNB