PITT 8 GIRLS: Crowder takes high-scoring win in third place finish

Jan. 22—The Demonettes captured the momentum, and used it to their advantage.

Canadian and Crowder faced off in the third place game at the Pitt 8 Conference Tournament, with the Demonettes using a large scoring run in the first half to secure the 77-43 win.

Katie Woodruff wasted no time in putting the Lady Cougars on the board, scoring the first seven points for Canadian. But Madi White nailed a triple for the Demonettes, setting off a back-and-forth for much of the quarter.

It wasn't until the final minutes, when White and Maggie Sockey combined for three made shots from beyond the arc to take a 25-15 lead heading into the second quarter.

In the next period, Crowder exploded on the offensive end of the floor.

The Demonettes rattled off a 10-0 run to start the second quarter before Woodruff put one up and in for the Lady Cougars. But Crowder wasn't done scoring yet, with shots from Sockey, White, Kylie Smith, and Brooky Surginer completing another scoring run of the Demonettes.

The Lady Cougars continued to battle, and three point buckets from Dell Watson and Tammanie Anzlovar trimmed the deficit to a 48-23 Crowder lead at the half.

On the other side of the intermission, Crowder hit a pair of triple to open the third quarter. But the Lady Cougars responded, matching the pace of the Demonettes on the way to a 61-27 Crowder lead by the end of the period.

Although both teams battled to the final horn, the Demonettes would continue their offensive push to seal the win and third place finish.

White led Crowder with 26 points, followed by Sockey with 22 points, Surginer with 15 points, and Smith with nine points.

Woodruff led Canadian with 19 points, followed by Watson with 13 points, and Anzlovar with six points.

Crowder will next play host to Warner on Tuesday, with tipoff set for 6:30 p.m.

Canadian will next face off against Pittsburg on Tuesday, with tipoff set for 6:30 p.m..

SAVANNA 60, KIOWA 54 (OT) (Consolation championship)

Sophia Calistro wasn't going to let her team go down quietly.

The Savanna sophomore took over in the overtime period in the final day of the Pitt 8 Conference Tournament on Saturday in Canadian, scoring seven points in the extra frame to complete the Lady Bulldogs' 60-54 comeback win to be named consolation champions.

After a defensive start that kept the game scoreless for more than two minutes, Savanna broke the ice thanks to a free throw from Raci Jackson. The Cowgirls then put themselves on the board with a bucket from Kourtnie McCormick.

That set off a back and forth between the two teams, but a jumper from the Cowgirls put them ahead 11-8 after the opening period.

In the second quarter, Allie Scrivner sent a long two sailing into the net, later followed by fast break buckets from Ella Stone and Alison Wolfenbarger to extend the Kiowa lead.

The Lady Dawgs stayed on the attack, and after Wolfenbarger hit a triple, Savanna responded with one of its own from Sophia Calistro to make it a 25-17 Kiowa lead at the half.

Coming out of the locker room, the Cowgirls rattled off a 6-0 run to extend the lead to 10 points. But Savanna quelled the run with a pair of foul shots from Addison Moore, later adding two more Adrianna Carpenter.

Ella Stone next sank a triple to keep a cushion for the Cowgirls, but Savanna's Kacelyn Osborne answered with a three of her own and a free throw to make it a 39-29 Kiowa lead heading into the final period.

After trading buckets to open the fourth, defensive efforts once again took hold until Stone scored on a fast break to put the Cowgirls up 12 with six minutes remaining.

Savanna wasn't done scoring yet, cutting the deficit down to eight points. Calistro was later fouled on a made bucket from the baseline, and hit her following foul shot to make it a five point game with three minutes left in the ballgame.

Calistro next sent a long three swirling into the goal, sending the Savanna faithful into a frenzy. McCormick then used a post move to put the ball up and in, pushing the Cowgirls ahead by four.

With just more than a minute remaining, a foul sent Calistro to the line for the Lady Dawgs, where she hit the front end to make it a one-possession ballgame.

Calistro would be fouled once again, sinking both of her free throws for a one-point deficit with 32 seconds left in the game. Kiowa would be awarded foul shots of its own, with Wolfenbarger hitting one to extend the lead back to two.

But it'd be Calistro heading back to the foul line, icily sinking both shots to tie the game at 49-49 and send it into overtime.

Osborne struck first in the free basketball period to give Savanna the lead. The Lady Dawgs kept attacking the basket, and Calistro hit a pair of free throws to try to pull away from the Cowgirls.

The aggressive attack from Savanna never let up, as the Lady Dawgs kept finding their way back to the free throw line. And fittingly, it'd be Calistro hitting the final two to seal the championship victory for Savanna.

Calistro led the way with 30 points, followed by Osborne with 14 points, and Hoffman with five points.

Stone led Kiowa with 17 points, followed by Wolfenbarger and McCormick with 10 points each.

The Cowgirls will next hit the road as they face off against Caddo on Tuesday, with tipoff set for 6:30 p.m.

The Lady Dawgs will next host fellow Pitt 8 member Indianola on Tuesday, with tipoff set for 6:30 p.m.

Contact Derek Hatridge at dhatridge@mcalesternews.com.