Class A, No. 2 Waldron utilized a 25-5 run over an eight-minute span in the second and third quarters to pull away from Southwestern and secure a semifinal win in the Shelby County Girls Basketball Tournament Thursday night at Waldron, 49-33.
Bella Larrison scored a game-high 17 points and Megan Bogemann connected on a trio of three-pointers during that game-changing run to finish with 14 points and put the Mohawks, now 15-1, in Saturday’s championship game against Class 2A, No. 6 Triton Central.
“We never found our groove which I kind of expected,” said Waldron head coach Anthony Thomas in his postgame interview with GIANT fm radio. “You practice four days and you don’t really have any game-type stuff even though you try to simulate it. I expected us to be a little flat but I was proud of how we came out and played in the third quarter and put the game away.”
With her performance Thursday, Larrison surpassed Hannah Sullivan and Courtney Sawyer to move into ninth place on the Mohawks’ career scoring list.
Larrison was the steadying force while Bogemann was explosive for a Waldron team that struggled in the first half to knock down field goals against a stingy Southwestern defense.
“Bella was very active tonight. She was kind of our leader when we needed it,” said Thomas.
The Spartans were held scoreless in the first quarter but the Mohawks hit just 4 of 10 shots and missed all three 3s in building a 10-0 lead.
Alison Muck sank the first of two free-throw attempts at the 7:07 mark of the second quarter to get the Spartans on the scoreboard. Lilly Rooks followed with a layin, McKinley Correll hit a free throw and Lily Kerber scored twice from close range to cut Waldron’s lead to 12-8.
Mackenzie Shaw scored off an offensive rebound for Waldron with 3:16 to go in the half that ignited an 8-0 run and a 20-10 halftime advantage.
Bogemann, Shelby County’s top 3-pointer shooter with 42 this season entering the tournament, hit her first trifecta with 7:37 left in the third quarter and added two more in the run that extended the lead to 37-13.
“Once (Bogemann) gets going, her teammates find her and she gets in a rhythm,” said Thomas. “She knocked down some shots we needed.”
Rooks scored five of her team-high 14 points in the fourth quarter when she also had three rebounds and four steals. She finished the game with seven steals.
Kerber had 10 points in her final county tournament. She also had five rebounds to match Muck’s five rebounds.
The Spartans finished the game 11 of 29 from the field (38%) and 9 of 12 from the free-throw line (75%). Twenty-six turnovers limited the offensive punch.
Waldron hit 9 of 14 shots in the third quarter, including four 3s, to finish 19 of 48 from the field (40%). The Mohawks were a perfect 6 of 6 from the free-throw line.
Waldron 49, Southwestern 33
SW: Correll 1-2 3-4 5, Muck 0-1 1-2 5, Kerber 5-11 0-0 10, Rooks 4-8 5-6 14, Kelley 0-2 0-0 0, Stockdale 1-3 0-0 3, Pile 0-2 0-0 0. Totals: 11-29 9-12 33.
WA: Had. Ross 1-4 0-0 2, Shaw 4-7 0-0 8, Bogemann 4-9 2-2 14, Garner 1-6 2-2 4, B. Larrison 7-13 2-2 17, J. Larrison 1-1 0-0 2, Fewell 1-1 0-0 2, Hal. Ross 0-4 0-0 0, Sheaffer 0-1 0-0 0, Benson 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 19-48 6-6 49.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
SW (7-7) 0 10 8 15 -- 33
WA (15-1) 10 10 22 7 – 49
Three-point field goals: SW 2-6 (Rooks 1-1, Kelley 0-1, Stockdale 1-3, Pile 0-1), WA 5-25 (Shaw 0-1, Bogemann 4-9, Garner 0-4, B. Larrison 1-6, Hal. Ross 0-3, Sheaffer 0-1, Benson 0-1). Rebounds: SW 20 (Correll 3, Muck 5, Kerber 5, Rooks 4, Kelley 2, Pile 1), WA 18 (Had. Ross 6, Shaw 1, Bogemann 1, Garner 1, B. Larrison 2, J. Larrison 2, Fewell 2, Hal. Ross 3). Assists: SW 5 (Correll 3, Rooks 1, Pile 1), WA 10 (Had. Ross 1, Garner 7, B. Larrison 1, Hal. Ross 1). Steals: SW 9 (Kerber 2, Rooks 7), WA 7 (Shaw 1, Bogemann 1, B. Larrison 3, Hal. Ross 2). Blocks: SW 2 (Kerber 1, Kelley 1), WA 1 (Hal. Ross 1). Total fouls: SW 10, WA 13. Turnovers: SW 26, WA 15.
