Brock Netter, Staff Writer
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
WHEELERSBURG — December 6, 2018.
FULL GALLERY: Brock Netter/SOSA
Nearly four years to the day, Wheelersburg defeated Northwest to begin a dominant era of the Pirates’ reign over the SOC II — a win that started a 62-game streak without a loss in conference play.
Fast forward to Thursday, Dec. 8, 2022, and that streak has come to a screeching halt.
Using a huge third quarter from Charlie Jo Howard, unmatched leadership from Emma Sayre and a lockdown defense throughout the second half, West (7-0, 5-0 SOC II) put away a program-elevating 52-40 victory over the Pirates.
The streak is over, and the Senators, still undefeated, sit atop the conference standings.
“When the schedule came out, this was one of the games we looked for and we had this marked,” Portsmouth West coach Larry Howell said. “This is all about these girls who have put in so much work for this. I’m just the guy talking to them and the referees. They weren’t going to be denied tonight, and I’m so happy for them.”
While West caught fire late, Wheelersburg had it early as 3’s from Madison Whittaker and Makenna Walker had the Pirates out to a 10-4 lead. Though West managed to trim the deficit to 12-8, a bucket from Whittaker put the Pirates ahead 14-8 after the first quarter.
Both offenses stalled for much of the second. And on the Senators’ bench sat starter Lexi Deaver, who was whistled for her third foul early.
However, trailing 16-9, West began to build some momentum off a pair of buckets from Emma Sayre that sparked an 8-3 spree to go into the half with Wheelersburg’s lead cut to 19-17.
“We knew the storm was coming. That comes with playing a team that hasn’t lost a conference game in four years,” Howell said. “They’re one of the very best in Southern Ohio. It didn’t help with Lexi getting her third foul, but we had kids like Kate Rollins and Sydney McDermott who did a really nice job picking up some slack.”
PHOTOS: Images from West’s win over Wheelersburg
West had the Pirates exactly where it wanted them, and turned to Charlie Jo Howard in the third.
She canned a triple to open the quarter, giving the Senators a 20-19 lead, that was followed by another shot from deep, and a third consecutive bucket for good measure and to flip momentum.
Though Wheelersburg kept the pace with 3’s from Lexie Rucker and Macee Eaton, Sayre buried the fourth triple of the frame for the Senators, putting them ahead 29-27.
Later tied at 31-31, Deaver connected on a bucket and Sayre scored with two seconds left to put West up 35-31 heading to the fourth.
“We came out in the second half just wanting to play more loose, and it worked out for us,” Howell said. “Charlie catching fire and hitting those shots was great. Emma did such a great job of doing everything for us. It gave us momentum we needed and we felt we could move the ball a bit more to force Wheelersburg into playing defense more before attacking.”
Realizing the opportunity in front of them, the Senators seized the moment as Sayre hit another shot before Rollins was left alone on the outside and hit a trey, capping a 9-0 run and giving West the biggest lead to that point at 40-31.
While the offense continued to make play after play, the defense held the Pirates’ offense without a field goal for nearly seven minutes as the lead reached double digits. The Senators went 10-of-12 at the free throw line in the fourth, and a perfect 8-for-8 in the final 1:30 to close out the win, cementing their place atop the SOC mountain.
“We were locked in defensively. The girls gave me the scouting report since they knew all the girls from Wheelersburg and played against them for years,” Howell said with a laugh. “They worked their tails off to get stops, rebound and then execute on the offensive end. This group of seniors, whether it’s volleyball, basketball or softball, have been working for their chance to finally beat Wheelersburg. It’s huge, not just for the program, but the kids as well.”
Sayre finished with a game-high 17 points to lead the Senators, followed by 11 points from Howard and nine points from Rollins.
Makenna Walker finished with 11 points, followed by 10 from Eaton.
West returns to action on Monday at home in conference action against Valley, while Wheelersburg rebounds at Oak Hill that same evening.
SPONSORED BY PAR MAR STORES
