It was answered.
The last-second shot bounced off the backboard and through the net to hand the Lady Rangers a thrilling 54-52 win over Sallisaw in a battle of ranked teams Tuesday night at Paul Post Fieldhouse.
Beshoner's buzzer-beater capped a wild finish to a game that Sallisaw appeared to put away when Ashley Covington drilled a three-point shot with two seconds left to put the Lady Diamonds up 52-51.
Roland called a timeout, and after advancing the ball to near midcourt, called another with 1.3 seconds remaining. The Lady Rangers inbounded the ball to Beshoner, who immediately turned and fired a long-range jumper.
"I turned around and shot it and I prayed the whole way," said Beshoner. "It hit the backboard and went in and I just started jumping up and down. I was so happy."
The basket was her third of the night from three-point range, but Beshoner wasn't confident that she would have time to get it off.
"When we went out on the floor, I told Ericka (Edwards) there was no way we can win it-there's not enough time. She goes don't think that way, just turn around and hit it," said Beshoner.
Roland head coach Bobby Walters said that was the shot the Lady Rangers wanted.
"That was one of the options. We wanted to get it to Jenny or go down to Ericka on the block. I just told them that whoever got it, put it up quick," said Walters.
Roland, which is ranked seventh in Class 4A, improved to 7-0 overall and 4-0 in the NOAA conference. Sallisaw, the 17th-ranked team in 4A, slipped to 5-3 and 2-1 despite turning in one of its best performances of the season.
After falling behind 10-2 in the opening minutes, the Lady Diamonds clawed back into the game and were within 17-15 when Lyndsey Daggs sank a three-pointer to close the first quarter.
Meghan Smith scored all of her team-high 12 points for Sallisaw in the first half, including four during a 12-1 run in the second quarter. Covington hit the first of her three treys to give Sallisaw its biggest lead of the night at 30-23 late in the first half. The Lady Diamonds were up 30-27 at halftime.
The lead changed hands seven times in the second half. Katie Beshoner and Ericka Edwards had four points each during the third period as Roland went in front 38-36, but Sarah Snider and Caitlyn Hall brought Sallisaw back with a combined 10 points in the fourth quarter.
Hall's driving shot handed Sallisaw a 47-44 lead with 3:32 left, but Katie Beshoner had a basket and two free shots during a 7-0 Roland surge that carried the visitors into a 51-47 advantage late in the game.
Snider's basket pulled Sallisaw to within two points with 52 seconds left and Smith pulled down a defensive rebound to give the Lady Diamonds a shot to tie or take the lead.
Sallisaw missed a flurry of shots as time ran down, but the ball was tipped out to the perimeter and Covington buried a three-pointer with :02 left. That put Sallisaw up 52-51 before Jenny Beshoner's late heroics.
"I thought Sallisaw played hard and did a good job. They're a good ball team," said Walters. "Our kids never quit and they never slumped their shoulders. They just kept battling."
Roland was led in scoring by the Beshoner twins with 15 points apiece. Ericka Edwards added 10 points, Lauren Edwards eight and Jasmine Kirkwood six.
Smith paced Sallisaw with 12 points and eight rebounds. Snider chipped in 11 points and seven boards. Hall added 10 points, Covington nine, Heather McCawley four, Candace McNamee three and Daggs three.
"I thought Sallisaw did a good job of handling our pressure," said Walters. "We never really got the press running like we have in our other games, but we played solid defense in the second half. Our shots weren't falling for us and we didn't get very many second chances."
ROLAND 71, SALLISAW 54 (B)
The Black Diamonds played Class 4A No. 7-ranked Roland close for the final three quarters, but couldn't make up an early deficit on Tuesday night.
Hot shooting by senior guard Coty Biles sparked the Rangers to an early double-digit lead. Biles scored all 10 of his points in the first quarter, sinking three treys, including a four-point play. Zach Roberts added another three-point basket in the final minute and Roland led 23-10.
Robert Thompson kept the Rangers in front with a strong game in the paint. The senior collected another double-double with 25 points and 14 rebounds as Roland improved to 7-0 overall and 4-0 in the NOAA.
Senior guard Mitch Lockhart tried to rally the Diamonds by hitting three shots from beyond the three-point arc and scoring a team-best 17 points. However, the closest Sallisaw could get was nine points following a Lockhart basket midway through the third period.
The Diamonds slipped to 5-3 overall and 1-2 in the conference. Stephen Branham and James Hoover both scored nine points, while Levi McInerney had eight, Tyler Sutherland seven and Blaine Dutchik four for Sallisaw.
Colton Daniel joined Thompson and Biles in double figures for Roland with 11 points. Daxx Roberts added seven points, Cory Silva six, Zach Roberts six, Karl Dixon four and Lee Massey two.
Both teams shot at least 50 percent from the floor. Sallisaw made 20-of-40 shots, while Roland was 28-of-45 (62.2 percent). The Rangers also had a big edge on the boards, outrebounding Sallisaw by a 26-12 margin.
