STATE EXTRA: Burford finds her groove

HARRISONGBURG
Buffalo Gap lacked in the perimeter-shooting department in its Group A, Division 1 quarterfinal against West Point, something that senior guard Renee Burford was not happy about.

Out of all the 3s that were shot, just two went in for the Bison in the first half, none of which came from Burford. In fact, Burford didn’t score a single point until less than a minute was left in the third quarter.

“We all had to get used to the new court,” Burford said. “I was getting really mad at myself. It was the depth of the entire gym that threw me off, it’s a lot different from playing at EMU.”

Confidence was short throughout the entire team, but it especially hit Burford hard.

“I talked to a couple of players individually about their confidence at halftime,” Buffalo Gap coach Chad Coffey said.

Although Burford hadn’t hit any of her shots, she built herself back up during the break and came out ready for action.

“After halftime we were motivated to pick it up because we were losing,” Burford said. “I knew that I just had to keep shooting.”

The lead was traded between the two teams throughout the third quarter, but the score stuck at a 32-32 tie near the end of the third frame — that’s when Burford stepped up.

“Renee’s confidence was down a little bit in the first half,” Coffey said. “Her depth perception was a little off with this big gym.”

With less than a minute on the clock, Sara Lamneck kicked the ball out to Burford at the far side of the perimeter. Burford sunk the 3 and sent her Bison into the final quarter with a three-point lead.

“It just kind of built us up from there,” Burford said.

Once the Bison saw their own Burford finally hitting a shot, the shots wouldn’t stop falling for Gap.

Burford scored 10 points overall and went back-to-back on her shots in the fourth quarter.