STATE EXTRA: Gap is going back to Richmond

HARRISONBURG – After a slow start, Buffalo Gap pulled away with a 55-48 win over West Point in the Group A, Division 1 quarterfinals on Saturday at James Madison University.

The shots wouldn’t fall for the Bison in the first half and the quick-paced Pointers overcame every obstacle the Bison threw at them.

Facing a zone defense caused problems for Gap, with not being able to use its powerhouse Sara Lamneck underneath. The Bison guards worked the perimeter, but that was all that they worked.

“We needed to look inside more and penetrate their zone more,” said Buffalo Gap coach Chad Coffey.

Gap also had a problem with controlling West Point’s guard Kiera Gaines. Throughout the first half, Gaines broke through Gap’s man pressure numerous times.

“At first [Gaines] was hard to read, she’s quick and unpredictable,” Buffalo Gap guard Holly Morgan said. “My team helped me out whenever she would get by me, though.”

The Bison pushed a full-court man press, but the Pointers blew by every time. West Point benefited from Gap’s press more than Gap did.

“With the press, I’m a firm believer of never giving up more than you’re given,” Coffey said.

The Bison were outscored 15-9 in the first quarter but were able to hold the Pointers to just six points in the second quarter. The teams went into the half with West Point leading 21-18.

“We came in at halftime and looked back on what we did and didn’t do,” Morgan said.

The Bison came out of the break, sick of how they had just played, and were ready to roll.

A slight defensive change came out in Gap’s favor when it took away the full court press.

“Half court pressure condenses the court a little bit,” Coffey said.

The Bison guards came out on fire, hitting most of the 3 pointers that they threw up, and changing the pace of the game. The shots finally started falling for Gap.

“We all started hitting our shots and everything just started falling for us,” Morgan said.

The lead went back-and-forth between the Pointers and the Bison, with West Point matching every 3 pointer that Gap sunk.

With under a minute left in the third and the score tied at 32, Gap’s Renee Burford finally hit a 3 pointer — she hadn’t scored a single point throughout the first half. The Bison led 35-32 going into the final quarter.

“Shooting in the second half was huge for us,” Coffey said.

Gap started to run away with the lead in the fourth and West Point couldn’t get it back, no matter how close it got.

“In the second half we forced [West Point] out of their zone,” Coffey said. “Which I would have liked to do in the first half.”

Even with a few lucky 3’s from the Pointers, West Point never regained the lead in the fourth.

Gap outscored West Point 20-16 in the fourth, with shots coming from across the board. Lamneck led Gap with 15 points while Morgan added 14. Samantha Long and Burford both contributed 10 points.

West Point had just four players score, with Gaines leading with 22. Courtney Bell added 11, Paige Rowlett added eight and Kristen Medlin had seven.

Buffalo Gap faces Franklin County on Thursday at 11 a.m. at the Siegel Center in Richmond in the semifinal round.