Warriors and Warriorettes both defeated in matchups

 The Warriors traveled to Cleveland High School, on March 2, 2021, to play for the semi-finals. Turnovers played a huge factor in Sparta’s 68-53 deficit.

Cleveland won the tip but turned it over. On the other end, Grant Slatten was fouled and made 1/2 free throws. Soon after, Cleveland got an offensive rebound and put it back. At 7:25, Jake Davis knocked down a 3; 4-2 White County. Cleveland hit a jumper to tie it at 4, but Tanner Paul took it to the hole to give the Warriors back a 2-point lead. After a few traded possessions, Cleveland hit another jumper. A few more traded possessions passed, and a foul was called on Cleveland. The Warriors inbounded the ball as Davis threw a lob to Slatten for 2. About a minute later, Cleveland got fouled and went 1/2 from the line. Slatten drove to the rim on the next play. With 1:09 left in the first, Cleveland got an offensive put back. Slatten hit a jumper 14 seconds later. Cleveland hit the ball out of bounds and gave the ball back to the Warriors. At 12.3, Cameron Stephens scored a layup in transition. The Warriors led 14-9. Cleveland had the ball with 8 seconds left and a three was thrown up after the buzzer but was counted anyway. The Warriors still led 14-12 going into the second quarter.

Sparta possessed the ball to start the second, but the ball went out of bounds. The Warriors inbounded it and found Slatten in the paint with a jumper. At the seven-minute mark, Cleveland put up a 3 but missed. Going the other way, Tanner Paul kicked it out to Slatten for 3. The Warriors led 19-12. Both teams had a few more turnovers, but, on the last one, Cleveland took it all the way and laid it up. On the next play, Tanner Paul drove in and scored 2. Around 5:20, a Cleveland player got fouled as he made the bucket. He went to the line and completed his And1. Cleveland then made a 3, bringing the score to a 1-point game. Sparta called a timeout at 4:50 as Cleveland went on a 6-0 run. Over a minute later, Thomas Paul got fouled as he went up. He toed the line and made both free throws. Under 3:30, Cleveland scored the next 4 points. At 2:30, Thomas Paul drove baseline and scored 2, 25-24. Cleveland’s Hurst scored back to back 3s. Neither team scored for the last two minutes until the buzzer - Cleveland got an offensive put back. Cleveland outscored Sparta 18-5 in the second quarter and led 32-25 at the half.

Cleveland had the ball but missed. Sparta turned the ball over, and, at 6:45, Cleveland hit a 3. Fifty seconds later, Slatten cut to the rim and Paul hit him for 2. Forty seconds after that, Cleveland made another 3, and a timeout was called. After the timeout, Slatten made the next three buckets, 33-38 Cleveland High School. Stephens stole the ball and it was hit out of bounds. On the inbound, a lob to Stephens was blocked, but he got his own rebound and went back up with it, cutting the lead to 3. Under two minutes, Cleveland missed a 3 but stole the ball back. They had driven the lane, and Slatten blocked it, but the officials decided it was a foul. Cleveland went to the line and went 2/2. At 1:30, Slatten drove and spun to lay it up, 37-40 Cleveland High School. Cleveland made the next 5 points, and Sparta called a timeout between the buckets. The Warriors trailed 37-45 as they had seven turnovers in the third quarter. With 36.1 left, Slatten got fouled and made both free throws at the line. Cleveland missed the last shot and closed out the quarter with a 45-39 lead.

Sparta possessed the ball to start the fourth it missed. Cleveland called a timeout and got sent to the line after it, going 2/2. A foul on Sparta’s end gave them the ball on the inbound. Tanner Paul lobbed it up to Slatten for a quick 2. The score was 47-41 Cleveland High School. Cleveland missed their shot, but Sparta turned it over, making it their 16th turnover to Cleveland’s ninth After the turnover, Cleveland made a 3. At 5:17, Tanner Paul drove in and scored 2 - Sparta timeout. The score was 50-43 Cleveland, and Cleveland hit a jumper after the timeout. They also made the next 5 points, which was the turning point of the game. At 4:15, Thomas Paul laid it up, but Cleveland made the next 4 points. Around 2:30, Thomas Brock got an offensive put back and was fouled as he scored but missed his free throw. As Cleveland took the ball down, #11 dribbled through the paint to try and stall. He got fouled and made both of his free throws, scoring his 30th point. With less than two minutes to go, Tanner Paul was fouled for a one-and-one. He went to the line and made the first and second. The Warriors still trailed 49-63. Cleveland made the next two buckets, taking a 67-49 lead. Right at a minute, Tanner Paul made back-to-back buckets, 67-53-67 Cleveland High School. With 30 seconds left, Cleveland was fouled and went 1/2 from the line. A timeout was called from Cleveland so both teams could play their underclassmen. Cleveland held the ball for the last seconds of the game. The Warriors fought hard but endured a 68-53 loss.

The Warriorettes traveled to Stone Memorial for a region semi-final game. They played their hearts out and left it all on the floor. It was a close, back-and-forth game until the last three minutes. The Warriorettes lost 51-44.

The first quarter got off to a slow start. Stone won the tip, but 10 seconds in, Mia Murray stole the ball. The Warriorettes turned the ball over, but Stone missed their shot. On the other end, the Lady Panthers knocked the ball out of bounds, and the Warriorettes inbounded it. They got it in but also missed the shot. At 6:35, Stone’s Dishman made a 3 as the first points of the night. The Warriorettes went their way but missed their shot. Sparta tied the ball up and gained back the possession but couldn’t convert. Back-to-back fouls by Murray led to a Stone inbound and Miller 2 points. After traded turnovers, Alaina Stiles scored 2 and got fouled at 3:33. She went to the line and completed her 3-point play. Soon after, Gracie Dodgen drove to the rim and got fouled. She made both of her free throws and tied the game at 5. Around 2:50, Stone’s Goss scored 2, but 20 seconds later, Addison Frazier drove and scored 2 as well, keeping it at 7. After a few more turnovers, Nia Powers made a layup for the Warriorettes. The Lady Panthers hit the ball out of bounds, and the Warriorettes took advantage. Dodgen again drove to the rim and hit a floater, with 11.6 left. Stone missed their shot and closed out the first quarter trailing 7-11.

The Lady Panthers possessed the ball starting the second quarter. There was a loose ball on the floor that Miller recovered and went up with. She was fouled and made one out of her two shots for Stone. On the next play, she scored two more. At the seven-minute mark, White County’s Frazier threw a long pass down the floor to Morgan Quick for a transition layup. Fourteen seconds later, Stone was fouled and went 2/2 from the line. Right after, Dodgen drained a 3. Over the next minute, the Lady Panthers made the next four baskets, tying the game at 16. At 5:11, Celeste Reed went up and got fouled. She went to the line and made 1/2. About 30 seconds later, Sparta hit the ball out of bounds and gave it back to Stone, and Miller scored 2 more. With 4:30 remaining, Dodgen drained another 3 to take a 20-18 lead. Shortly after, Stone’s Goss hit a jumper to tie it at 20. Another jump at 2:47 gave the Warriorettes the ball under the basket. As the ball went in to Dodgen, she drove to the rim for 2. About a minute later, Powers found herself with a transition layup, which gave the Warriorettes a 24-20 lead. Both teams turned it over, and Goss missed the front end of a one-and-one for Stone. After the turnovers, Miller scored the next 4 points for Stone and ended the half at 24 each.

Stone had the ball starting the second half, and Miller scored 2 points 30 seconds in. After a few more turnovers, Murray blocked a shot and took the ball all the way to the 3-point line and drained it. Around 5:16, the Lady Panthers fumbled around with the ball and then called a timeout. After the timeout, they scored a layup. The Warriorettes scored the next 5 points: Murray assisted Dodgen with 2, and Quick knocked down a transition 3. The Warriorettes got up 4, 32-28. Both teams traded possessions and turnovers until 46.9, and Dishman made a 3 for Stone to cut the lead to 1. With 29.6 left in the third, Stiles got fouled as she laid it in, but missed her free throw. Before the buzzer, Miller got her offensive rebound and was fouled as she went up. She went to the line and made both free throws. The Warriorettes led by one going into the fourth quarter.

Sparta possessed the ball to start the last eight minutes of the night. Dodgen scored 2 points 15 seconds in. At 7:21, Miller grabbed her offensive rebound and put it back. Fifty seconds later, Murray hit the ball out of bounds. The Lady Panthers had the ball on the sideline, but got fouled once the ball came in. Around 6:10, they had the ball on the sideline again but missed their scoring opportunity. At 5:57, Sparta got the ball at their inbound and a timeout was called. They got it back in, and Stone stole the ball. On the other end, about a minute later, Goss got fouled and went 2/2, allowing the Lady Panthers to take a 1-point lead, 37-36. At 4:48, Sparta turned it over and fouled Stone. Forty seconds later, as Stone tried to hold the ball, Reed stole it. The Warriorettes got a five-second call, so the ball went back to the Lady Panthers, and they called a timeout with 4:00 remaining. After the timeout, Miller scored 2 and was fouled, but missed her free throw. Stone’s Freitag scored the next 4 points, and Sparta called a timeout around the two-minute mark. The ball went back and forth for the next minute. Stone possessed it as the one-minute mark approached and called a timeout. After the timeout, Freitag was fouled and went to the line for one-and-one. She made the first and second: 45-36 Stone Memorial. At 46.2, Quick made a 3, and Sparta called a timeout. The score was 45-39 as Stone got the ball on the baseline. Once it was put in play, Goss was fouled and made both of her free throws as a one-and-one. With 37 seconds left, Stiles made a quick 2, and Freitag was fouled, going 2/2 from the line. This put Stone up 49-41. At 19.3, Sparta got fouled but missed their scoring opportunity off the inbound. With 3.3 left, Freitag was fouled again and went 2/2, and Stone called a timeout in between the free throws. Stone led 51-41. After the timeout, Murray dribbled down and banked in a half-court shot at the buzzer. The final score was 51-44, with the Warriorettes taking the loss.

Dodgen: 16pt-2rebs-1blk

Quick: 8pt-3rebs

Stiles: 7pt-1stl-3rebs

Murray: 6pt-3ast-1stl-2rebs-1blk

Powers: 4pt-1ast-1reb

Frazier: 2pt-8ast-6rebs

Reed: 1pt-1stl