Draft seniors throttle Gap

The Stuarts Draft girls were up 40 points going into the fourth quarter and the seniors turned the court over to their teammates to secure the Shenandoah District win over Buffalo Gap, 74-35, in the last game of the regular season.

“We are trying to get as much time as possible for the underclassmen and they did a good job. I told them that was the building block for next year,” Stuarts Draft coach Jason Kirby said.

It took the Cougars half the quarter to work out the kinks, giving up 13 points before Austin Wampler began making fast breaks to score back-to-back baskets and get the Draft crowd pumped up.

Abby Erskine added four points in the fourth to lead the Bison with 13 points on the night, seven of those coming at the free-throw line. Morgan Houle upped the score with a pair of 3-pointers in the third quarter for Buffalo Gap, finishing out the night with nine points.

Draft honored four seniors who shot 61 percent in the first half. Morgan Holbert nailed a pair of 3-pointers and a two-point shot, while Ericka McIntire put up six of her 18 points in the first quarter. Holbert led the Cougars with 21 points.

The Cougars had just two turnovers in the first half and 14 assists, taking a 41-16 lead at the half.

“I think we ran on senior night emotions tonight. I told them that’s the way we need to come out every night – push when the opportunity is available and crash the boards,” Kirby said. “All four of these seniors [Holbert, McIntire, Kendall Ashby and Kailey Sitzberger] have been playing since the eighth grade. They provide so much leadership. They take care of things so I don’t have to. We will miss their production on the floor. They will be tough to replace.”

Holbert came out in the third hitting a pair of 3-pointers and added a pair of baskets, while Sitzberger added a 3-pointer followed by a Skyler Wimer score to close the third with a decisive 63-23 lead.

Draft (17-4, 12-2 Shenandoah District) plays at Fort Defiance tomorrow at 5:30 p.m., while Gap heads into the Shenandoah District tournament on Friday.