Stonewall Jackson erased a double-digit early deficit, and senior guards Hannah Williams and Zoe Kanti combined for 30 points to spark the Raiders to a Cedar Run Tourney title, 45-42 over host Patriot.
“We came in tonight not really focused on what we were doing,” said Stonewall coach Anthony Diggs. “So we had to go back to what we do and do best, defense.”
After Patriot raced to a 12-1 lead the first five minutes of the game, Stonewall did just that, forcing turnovers to generate offense. The Raiders closed the quarter on a 7-0 run, and cut the Patriot lead to 22-18 at half.
Then the Raiders offense started to come around even more in the third quarter. Kanti was Stonewall’s offense for much of it, accounting for 10 points. Junior guard Maryan Yusef and sophomore wing Amanie Bonchu-Stokes buried threes to close the third, capping an 18-point third quarter output that matched the Raiders’ offensive production the first two quarters. Stonewall led 36-32.
Stonewall’s defense then sealed the deal. Star Pioneers guards Caitlin Blackman and Elana Bertrand did damage, but were limited to eight second half points between them. The Raiders’ full-court zone press produced a lot of steals, and the Pioneers were often forced to foul to prevent breakaways. As a result, Stonewall (15-9) got to the line 26 times on the evening while Patriot only got there six times.
Williams led the way with 16 points, also creating havoc with her defensive ability. Kanti had 14, while Bonchu-Stokes had eight points and ten rebounds. It was a very satisfying victory for the Raiders, who were the tournament’s fourth seed and had to win a couple of road games to the win the title.
“We’ve had injury and illness all year long,” said Diggs, whose team slipped late in the regular season in no small part to those two things. “We’re finally starting to get everybody back. I’m very happy with what the girls have done. They’ve been strong, they’re good kids, and they’ve done everything we asked. This is the best time for us to get better.”
Bertrand had 12 points, Kayla Amoah 11, and Blackman 10 points and nine boards for Patriot (12-13).
Both teams advance to regionals next week.
–Chris Jollay
all stats are unofficial
| STONEWALL | FG | FT | TP | REB | AST | |
| WILLIAMS | 4-14 | 6-8 | 16 | 4 | 1 | |
| YUSEF | 2-7 | 0-1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | |
| BONCHU | 2-5 | 3-6 | 8 | 10 | 3 | |
| KANTI | 3-11 | 7-9 | 14 | 2 | 3 | |
| GOINES | 0-7 | 1-2 | 1 | 7 | 1 | |
| Umana | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TOTALS | 11-44 | 17-26 | 45 | 23 | 9 | |
| Threes: Yusef 2-4, Williams 2-5, Bonchu 1-3, Kanti 1-5, Goines 0-5 | ||||||
| PATRIOT | FG | FT | TP | REB | AST | |
| BERTRAND | 4-10 | 3-4 | 12 | 2 | 4 | |
| PRINCE | 1-4 | 0-0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | |
| BLACKMAN | 4-10 | 0-0 | 10 | 9 | 1 | |
| MOORE | 2-4 | 0-0 | 5 | 8 | 2 | |
| AMOAH | 5-9 | 1-2 | 11 | 5 | 3 | |
| Upperman | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Casey | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Smith | 1-2 | 0-0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | |
| A.Banks | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TOTALS | 17-40 | 4-6 | 42 | 30 | 12 | |
| Threes: Blackman 2-6, Moore 1-2, Bertrand 1-3, Prince 0-1 | ||||||