Deal of the Day
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Defense does it for Atlee over Godwin 53-48 Published: February 27, 2009  Photo by Charlie Leffler
BY SARA PAGE Media General News Service View Atlee Photo Gallery Atlee took a 34-29 lead into the fourth quarter thanks to two 3-pointers in a row by sophomore guard Taylor Henderson. The Lady Raiders extended the lead to seven in the opening seconds of the final quarter when senior guard Sydney Henderson tipped a defensive rebound to Britt Hill, who took off down the court for the fast break finish. Despite four turnovers by Mills Godwin, the Lady Raiders would not score again until midway through the quarter. Meanwhile the Lady Eagles whittled the lead down to three. As Mills Godwin tried to work their way back up, the Lady Raiders kept pounding the middle. But it was again their outside shot that came through when they needed it. Taylor Ashcraft hit a big shot with 4:08 remaining to end the Atlee scoring drought. “Actually that was one of the bigger jump shots that we’ve had all season, and she’s a very good jump shooter,” Atlee head coach Anna Prillaman said. “Sometimes she gets lost in the shuffle. She’s a role player for us. She gets rebounds and sets good picks and handles the ball well for us, but yeah, that was a big shot.” A short jumper by Richelle Price put the team up by seven and Mills Godwin found themselves in the unenviable position of having to foul. “We were just trying to get a couple stops here and there, and we’re a real good free throw shooting team , so we were hoping that it was us at the end of the game at the line … We just couldn’t hold the lead long enough for that to happen,” Mills Godwin head coach Mark Seidenberg said. The Lady Eagles went on an 8-2 scoring run to pull within two, but with only 1:15 remaining, had to put Atlee on the foul line. The Lady Raiders went 10-for-10 from the charity stripe in the waning minutes, six attempts came from Sydney Henderson, and according to Prillaman, there’s no one else the team would rather have on the line. “It was good to have Sydney on the foul line,” Prillaman said. “Anytime in practice I threaten to have them run if someone doesn’t make this free throw, they always volunteer Sydney. They have confidence in her, she has confidence in herself and she’s just a good free throw shooter.” “We practice all the time on free throws because we know when we have games like these, it’s going to be down to foul shots and anyone who gets the ball just is trusted to take care of it, and when [the opposing teams] foul, make the free throws at the end,” Sydney Henderson added. The game wasn’t always comfortable for the Lady Raiders though. Up three (17-14) at halftime, Atlee watched their lead fade with a quick three from Rachel Nichols, a foul shot by Michelle Foley and another 3-pointer by Tricia Watkins, which put the Lady Eagles up 21-17 just two minutes into the second half, but seven turnovers in a four minute span swung momentum back to Atlee going into the final minutes. “You’ve got to give [Atlee] credit for their pressure,” Seidenberg said. “We turned the ball over when they pressured us, and we just made mistakes … Our goal is to keep it under 10 turnovers in any game, and I think all five girls can handle the ball that start, but we didn’t do a good job of handling it tonight.” The Lady Eagles end their season at 26-2 which sets a school record for victories. They were led by Foley with 15 points and 11 rebounds, Watkins with 12 points and five rebounds and Nichols with 10 points and five rebounds. Atlee had four players in double digits for the game. Price led with 15 points and nine rebounds followed by Sydney Henderson with 14 points and Britt Hill and Taylor Henderson with 11 points each. The Lady Raiders shot 75-percent from the free throw line. The team moves on to take on Cosby in the Central Region Tournament Final Monday evening at 6 p.m. at the Siegel Center. The Lady Titans were 66-38 winner over Hanover in the early semifinal game. Both teams earned a bid to states but play Monday for a combination of pride and the chance to host a first-round state game at the Siegel Center. “It’s going to take a lot [to win],” Sydney Henderson said. “We’re going to have to play with heart and play together and just believe in each other.” Sara Page is Sports Editor of the Midlothian Exchange.
ATLEE (24-3) Townes 0, Hill 11, S. Henderson 14, T. Henderson 11, Price 15, Ashcraft 2, Eberle 0. Totals 18 12-16 53. Final, Monday 2009 All Central Region Basketball Teams GIRLS First team Ruthanne Doherty L.C. Bird Shay Bentley Manchester Jasmin Pitts Cosby Michelle Foley Mills Godwin Kalia Johnson Thomas Dale Player of the Year Rachel Mead Cosby Coach of the Year Second team Chelsea Coward Hanover Richelle Price Atlee Candice Silas Monacan Crystal Smith Meadowbrook Becca Wann Cosby Honorable Mention Kyra Coleman Highland Springs Elaine Derricott Henrico Alyssa Frye Thomas Dale Sydney Henderson Atlee Taylor Huber Patrick Henry Jorden Lykes Prince George Sarah Parsons J.R. Tucker Andrea Sisson Mills Godwin Amy Turner Deep Run Ashley Whitaker Petersburg BOYS First Team Josh Brinley Douglas Freeman Trey Davis Henrico Travis McKie John Marshall David Robinson Cosby Cadarian Rianes Petersburg Player of the Year Frank Threatts Jr. John Marshall Coach of the Year Second Team David Brown Huguenot Jake Eastman Douglas Freeman Antone Exum Deep Run Scott Drejon Petersburg Natwan Young Highland Springs Honorable Mention Luis Albalat Manchester Cameron Colquitt Atlee Jonathan Crawley Huguenot Che’von Davenport Varina Grant Diechman James River Milton Gohlson Hopewell Xaiver Parham Highland Springs Andrew Simmons Meadowbrook Randall Ward John Marshall Andrew White Thomas Dale
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