(Game highlights)
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Gilmer County made the most of what it worked for over the season’s first 24 games in its Class A quarterfinal Tuesday against No. 8 Union.
The top seed Titans held the Tigers scoreless in the first quarter and smothered them throughout with their trademark defensive pressure, forcing 42 turnovers in a 69-27 runaway victory at the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center.
“Our intensity was great,” Titans’ head coach Amy Chapman said. “We knew our personnel well. Defensively, we did what we do and got after it. We put a lot of pressure on them and got up in the passing lanes.”
Gilmer County (23-2) didn’t make a field goal until 3 minutes into the matchup, but once the Titans got going, they never looked back. Five different GCHS players scored in the first quarter, with guard Carrah Ferguson responsible for the final 8 points over a stretch of 1:34 that allowed the Titans to lead 17-0 ahead of the second quarter. Thirteen of those 17 points came off turnovers.
“Any one of our starters and a couple on the bench can lead us in scoring,” Chapman said. “We’re really good at finding open person and taking high percentage shots.”
After missing all seven of its field-goal attempts in the opening quarter, Union (16-6) discovered some offense in the second quarter, but the Titans continued to extend their lead courtesy of 14 more points off turnovers and a 10-0 edge in fastbreak points for the frame.
The Titans went to halftime having attempted 45 field goals to the Tigers’ 17. The 16 baskets made by Gilmer was just one fewer than what Union attempted, in large part because of 27 first-half turnovers.
Tigers’ head coach Alex Stapleton thought nerves played a factor in what Union’s first appearance at the state tournament.
“It’s been overwhelming for us,” Stapleton said. “A small school, first time, a big arena. That was a lot of the jitters. Hey, we learned from it and hopefully we’ll be back next year.”
With a comfortable lead over the final three quarters, the Titans backed off on pressing fullcourt, an aspect of defense they like to utilize after making or missing shots. Instead, they continued to make life difficult for Union in its halfcourt sets, and held the Tigers to 10 field goals for the contest.
“That’s always a plus when you can save legs and save energy,” Chapman said. “We get after it 90 feet and we know that this week is crammed with games and we’re going to try to get in the gym and practice. To be able to save our kids’ legs was good, and I was really proud of our bench players for going in there and doing their thing.”
As is usually the case, the Titans were balanced offensively and Ferguson’s 13 points were a team high. Trinity Bancroft followed with 12 and Emma Taylor added 10 to go with seven steals and four assists. Taylor McHenry and Bayley Frashure followed with eight apiece.
“We like to have a lot of ball movement,” Ferguson said. “It’s our thing besides defense. We’re not a selfish team at all.”
Allie Ellyson had five of the Titans’ 19 assists, while Malaysia Morgan recorded a team-high nine rebounds in the win.
Nine different Union players scored, though none had more than four points. Alyson Streets had a game-high 10 boards in defeat.
“We tried to slow the game down. It didn’t work very well,” Stapleton said. “They’re fast. We tried to pull all the tricks out. Sometimes a team is a little bit better than you and they have the right game plan at the right time.”
The Titans will battle the winner of No. 4 Doddridge County/No. 5 Webster County in a semifinal Thursday at 7:15 p.m.
(Gilmer County postgame press conference)