ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, February 20, 1997 TAG: 9702200050
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CHRIS LANG STAFF WRITER
When it comes to crunch time in a postseason basketball game, more times than not a senior leader will step up and provide the edge needed for victory.
For the William Fleming girls' basketball team, however, the star of the hour was sophomore guard Shaunarey Walker, who scored nine of her game-high 23 points in overtime as the Colonels shocked Cave Spring 57-54 on its home floor in a Roanoke Valley District semifinal on the Knights' home floor.
With the victory, the Colonels advance for a third date with regular-season district champion Pulaski County, who dropped fourth-seeded Franklin County in Wednesday night's early semifinal. The Cougars, led by Trina Williams' 18 points overcame a sluggish first half to defeat the Eagles 80-60.
More importantly, the Colonels (12-7) clinched a spot in the Group AAA Northwest Region tournament with Wednesday's upset victory.
It looked like the Colonels would pull the upset with ease, taking a 32-22 lead into the fourth quarter. But the Knights scrapped their way back into the game by taking advantage of the Colonels' game plan.
Fleming pulled the ball out and tried to run time off the clock with the 10-point cushion.
"We tried to look for the best shot," Fleming coach Cynthia Brown said. "I would have liked to put the ball in Shaunarey's hands. We were trying to spread the ball around and I told everyone to hit the boards."
Three times after scoring, Cave Spring fouled William Fleming, and three times the Colonels missed the front end of a one-and-one. After Walker turned the ball over, the Knights drove down the floor and Stacie Morioka drained a 3-pointer from left of the key to tie the game at 32-32 with 4:49 left in regulation.
"I think our kids did a great job in the second half of coming back," said Linda Long, Cave Spring's coach. "They put us in a real position to win in the second half. But we played really intimidated in the first half."
The Colonels were still in position to win in regulation, but their defense couldn't hold. Mindy Reynolds passed to Lisa Bryan who hit a layup with 11 seconds left to tie the game at 44-44 and send it into overtime. That's when Walker took over.
"She's awesome," Brown said. "She plays hard and she plays smart."
Said Long: "She's a real player. She really took things over. When the game was on the line, you need a player to go to like that."
After a jumper from Amber Neil with one minute to play in overtime cut the Fleming lead to 54-52, Fleming played keep away for the next 40 seconds until Reynolds finally was able to foul Walker. She hit both free throws to put the lead at four again.
After a Cave Spring score, Walker was fouled again with nine seconds remaining and hit one of two free throws. The Knights did not get a good look at the basket and a 3-point attempt by Catie Redick couldn't find rim and Fleming preserved the upset.
"We just had too many turnovers," Long said. "Fleming is a good defensive and a good pressure team. When you fight that hard to come back, its hard to keep that adrenaline going. They showed a lot of heart and character."
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
LENGTH: Medium: 61 linesby CNB