Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
CHILLICOTHE — If you think the key to beating Huntington is simply limiting star guard Allie Baker’s scoring opportunities, think again.
The senior finished Thursday night’s Division V district quarterfinal with four points and reached the foul line — where she usually makes a living — just once.
Nine times out of 10, that would probably spell out trouble for the Huntsmen.
But Thursday was the exception as they played airtight defense and grinded out a 33-26 win over Zane Trace to advance.
“We’ve been saying all year that our role players have got to start contributing,” Huntington coach Kyle Uhrig said. “The more we’ve gone through the season, the more that’s happened. But credit to Allie. She played a great floor game tonight and didn’t really force stuff. She only had four shots in the first half and, for her, that’s unheard of. She takes about 18 each game. So I’m just proud of our overall effort, how hard the kids played and how they executed.”
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
With Baker face-guarded and hounded by defenders most of the night, freshman Brailee Hauswirth and senior Savannah Bushatz both played a part in picking up the slack.
Hauswirth, always a matchup nightmare, posted a game-high 15 points and was dominant on the glass, while Bushatz, usually coming off the bench, started in place of Araya Smith and gave her teammates quality minutes.
“Tonight, we were without Araya [Smith]. She suffered a concussion earlier and hopefully, we get her back tomorrow. But Savannah stepped up, played well on defense and hit a couple of shots. Obviously, Brailee played well. She just had a look in her eye tonight and we’ve known all along that she’s a special player. She stepped up and did a really nice job on the glass and put the ball in the hole, too.”
From the opening tip, Huntington (18-5) played energetically on the defensive end.
With a swarm-like mentality, the Huntsmen forced six turnovers and limited Zane Trace (5-17) to just four field goal attempts throughout the entirety of the first quarter.
Meanwhile, Hauswirth found a rhythm in the paint.
She provided the game’s first points just 41 seconds into the action before adding on buckets at the 6:40 and 4:30 marks of the first quarter, making it 6-2 in the early going. Bushatz then hit a 3 before Hauswirth sank two free throws, making it 11-2 at the beginning of the second.
Huntington’s Leah McCloskey scored through contact with 4:53 left in the first half before hitting the ensuing foul shot and making it a 14-2 count. ZT’s Aubree Thomas answered with a score just over a minute later but that’s all the Pioneers’ offense could muster.
At halftime, the Huntsmen had a comfortable 15-4 lead and it didn’t look as if ZT would ever find an offensive groove.
“Defensively, they gave great effort, giving up four points in the first half,” Uhrig said. “We kept telling them that if they didn’t let [Zane Trace] score, it’s tough for them to win. They came out and executed what we worked on over the past three days on the defensive end. We were a little sloppy at times, and just didn’t make some shots on the other end. But now, it’s just about gutting out wins. It’s win or go home at this time of the year.”
Hauswirth began the third quarter with a triple, making it 18-4, but ZT’s Emma Houston scored twice to cut the deficit to 10 at 18-8. Later, Haylyn Boggess-Pierce scored for the Pioneers, followed by a triple from Thomas to cut Huntington’s lead to 20-14 with 52.3 seconds left.
But Hauswirth provided a calm, scoring just before the buzzer to push the lead to 22-14.
Baker finally found the net just 12 seconds in the fourth, dialing long distance for a 25-14 count — essentially putting the game out of reach with how Huntington’s defense was playing.
The Pioneers managed to come with seven at 25-18 but that was as close as they’d get throughout the rest of the night. Down the stretch, Leah McCloskey, Hauswirth and Baker would all score once more to help put the icing on the cake.
“We’re a staff that’s somewhat innovative,” Uhrig said. “We’re always trying to do something new and that probably drives people nuts. But our players have bought into it. Their drive to pick up what we’re coaching them is unheard of. Tonight, you saw that. We haven’t played much man-to-man all year and we probably played three or four possessions of zone [defense] tonight. Our kids bought into what we were trying to do and I just couldn’t be more proud of them.”
Statistically, Hauswirth added six rebounds to her 15 points while McCloskey finished with seven points, five rebounds and a pair of assists. Baker had four points, five rebounds and five helpers, and Bushatz ended the night with five points.
Carlie Clark led the Pioneers with seven points and four rebounds, Houston had six points and five boards, and Boggess-Pierce and Thomas each finished the night with five points.
“Late in the year, [McCloskey] has gotten a lot of open looks because opponents have thrown so much at Allie,” Uhrig said. “When she gets an open look right now, it’s got a chance of going in the hole. She’s done a really good job of shooting the basketball. Some people don’t realize how much extra time she’s put into her craft. It’s paid off.”
While Zane Trace’s season comes to a close, Huntington advances to a Division V district semifinal at 8 p.m. on Monday at Waverly’s Downtown Gym.
There, the Huntsmen will square off with Alexander — a 53-43 winner over Southeastern on Thursday. Earlier in the year, Huntington topped the Spartans by a 50-37 final. However, Alexander is as hot as it gets, entering the contest on a six-game win streak.
“We know we’re going to have a tough assignment,” Uhrig said. “Alexander is a team that beat us in the sectional final last year. They are a great basketball team and it’s going to be a great challenge for us. Our kids are just happy we get to come in here three days in a row and prepare for the next one. Monday night, we’ll go to Waverly and have a great opportunity to try and see if we can advance one more time.”
BOX SCORE
Zane Trace: 2-2-10-12 — 26
Huntington: 11-4-7-11 — 33
Zane Trace: 11-33 FG, 1-4 FT, 3-10 3pt., 19 rebounds (Houston 5), 11 turnovers, 5 assists (Houston 2). Scoring: Clark 7, Houston 6, Thomas 5, Boggess-Pierce 5, Snavely 3.
Huntington: 11-37 FG, 8-14 FT, 3-12 3pt., 23 rebounds (Hauswirth 6), 7 turnovers, 10 assists (Baker 5). Scoring: Hauswirth 15, McCloskey 7, Bushatz 5, Baker 4, T. Smith 2.
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