CONTESTED SHOT — Big Red’s Phynyx Fleming fights through contact from Zanesville’s Kamy Morgan during the Division III East District tournament opener. – Andrew Grimm
STEUBENVILLE — Tournament season is always intense. Teams fight hard, and Zanesville showed this on Wednesday night. Despite a shaky start, they kept pushing back against Big Red, who ultimately secured a 56-42 win in their first match of the tournament at the Crimson Center.
Big Red, holding the No. 3 seed, blasted off to an impressive start. They scored the first 14 points of the game, making it seem like they would easily take control. But Zanesville, the fifth seed, quickly bounced back. They capitalized on some turnovers and closed the gap with a 15-6 scoring run.
After a three-pointer by Aniah Barnett early in the third quarter brought Zanesville within five, Big Red responded with a burst of energy, scoring nine straight points. After that, the lead stayed comfortable and never dipped back into single digits.
Big Red’s coach, Angie Forte, praised Zanesville’s effort. “Zanesville kept coming, they kept punching,” she noted. “In the tournament, no one is going to make it easy. We talked about starting strong and staying focused.”
At halftime, the team addressed their turnovers and rebounding. Forte said the players responded well in the second half. They launched a powerful 15-2 run at the start of the fourth quarter, which effectively decided the game, pushing the lead to 22 points at one point.
Nylah McShan led Big Red with 27 points and snagged a double-double. She scored impressively from the free-throw line, hitting 12 of 18 attempts. Lucy Saccoccia contributed 11 points, while Phynyx Fleming added nine, and Bailee Beall chipped in six.
With this win, Big Red advances to face the second seed, Dover, on Saturday at 1 p.m. Forte expressed pride in her team’s performance, saying, “It’s special for the girls to win their last home game.”
She acknowledged the challenge ahead, stating, “Dover is a well-coached team. It’s going to be tough for four quarters. That’s what tournament play is all about.”
Game Highlights:
- Final Score: No. 3 Steubenville 56, No. 5 Zanesville 42
- Quarter Scores:
- Z: 5, 10, 10, 17 – Total: 42
- S: 14, 9, 13, 20 – Total: 56
Zanesville Players’ Stats:
- Norman: 2 points
- Barnett: 5 points
- Morgan: 10 points
- Dickinson: 3 points
- Walker: 8 points
- Butcher: 3 points
- Gladden: 5 points
- Newman: 5 points
Steubenville Players’ Stats:
- Saccoccia: 11 points
- Scurry: 3 points
- Fleming: 9 points
- McShan: 27 points
- Beall: 6 points
3-Pointers: Zanesville: 5 (Morgan 2, Barnett, Butcher, Newman); Steubenville: 5 (Saccoccia, Scurry, Fleming, McShan, Beall).
Source link
Local Sports,Big Red girls pull away in tourney openerSports,Big Red girls pull away in tourney opener
