Lady Diamonds win 4A regional consolation title
The Sallisaw Lady Diamonds beat Sulphur 44-30 in the Class 4A regional consolation championship Saturday at North Rock Creek. Meanwhile, the Black Diamonds fell to Mannford, 5249, Thursday to end their regional aspirations early.
SALLISAW HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
Black Diamonds stopped early
The Sallisaw Lady Diamonds beat Sulphur 44-30 in the Class 4A regional consolation championship Saturday at North Rock Creek. Meanwhile, the Black Diamonds fell to Mannford, 5249, Thursday to end their regional aspirations early.
Sallisaw 44, Sulphur 30
The Sulphur Lady Bulldogs started slow, having two players make a shot each in the first period. But Sallisaw’s offense spread the ball around, and five Lady Diamonds each made a shot to take an early 12-5 lead.
In the second stanza, the teams each scored nine points for a 21-14 count by halftime.
The Lady Diamonds again had the upper hand in the third period, outscoring Sulphur 12-7 to pad their advantage to 33-21.
The Lady Bulldogs couldn’t turn the tide in the fourth frame, as Sallisaw outpaced Sulphur enroute to the 44-30 final.
Emma Martin and Addison Gream paced Sallisaw scorers with 17 and 10 points, respectively.
With the win, the Lady Diamonds advanced to the area tournament in Noble at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.
Sallisaw 12 9 12 11 –44 Sulphur 5 9 7 9 –30 SALLISAW – Emma Martin 17, Addison Gream 10, Madison Bolin 6, Emily Gregory 5, Kayli Macon 4, Abigail Qualls 2.
Sallisaw 36, Byng 32
The Byng Lady Pirates were able to outpace the Lady Diamonds in the first quarter for an early 8-5 lead. But the Lady Diamonds returned the favor in the second stanza, erasing Byng’s lead for a 14-14 stalemate going into intermission.
The second half, Sallisaw found a slight advantage by working hard to spread the offense a little more, which allowed four Lady Diamonds to find enough open shots that they outscored the Lady Pirates 12-8, giving Sallisaw a tenuous four-point cushion going into the final frame.
Sallisaw continued to use a spread offense as the teams matched points in the fourth quarter, but the Lady Diamonds’ defense struggled to contain Byng’s top offensive duo, Cadenie Carlos and Alona Cooper, which made seven and three points, respectively.
Byng 8 6 8 10 –32 Sallisaw 5 9 12 10 –36 SALLISAW – Addison Gream 12, Madison Bolin 7, Ellie Martin 7, Emily Gregory 6, Molly Carver 4.
Sallisaw 49, North Rock Creek 41 The Sallisaw Lady Diamonds beat North Rock Creek 49-41 in Thursday’s consolation bracket opener, with the Lady Diamonds getting off to an 8-4 edge in the first quarter.
In the second stanza, the Lady Cougars were able to apply some pressure, and Sallisaw’s early lead disappeared for a 16-16 stalemate going into intermission.
At the start of the second half, the Lady Cougars edged ahead of Sallisaw, 13-12, giving Sulphur a tenuous one-point lead at the start of the final frame.
The Lady Diamonds hit another gear in the fourth quarter with 21 points, powering ahead of North Rock Creek behind eight points from free throws by Kayli Macon, eight points from Ellie Martin’s two-pointer and six foul shots, Addyson Gream’s six points and Molly Carver’s penalty shot. The Lady Cougars’ 12-point answer could not keep Sallisaw from turning the corner to advance with the 49-41 win.
Gream and Martin paced Sallisaw with 17 and 16 points, respectively, and Macon also in double digits with 10 points.
Sallisaw 8 8 12 21 –49 North Rock Creek 4 12 13 12 –41 SALLISAW – Addyson Gream 17, Ellie Martin 16, Kayli Macon 10, Madison Bolin 5, Molly Carver 1.
Mannford 52, Sallisaw 49
In the boys’ half of the bracket, the Mannford Pirates outpaced the Black Diamonds in the first period for a 1512 edge, and the Pirates added to their advantage in the second period for a 2722 cushion going into the locker rooms.
Sallisaw started a campaign to get back into the game by chipping away at the lead, outscoring the Pirates 13-12 in the third stanza. But the Pirates were able to hold on down the stretch, eliminating the Black Diamonds from post-season play.
Mannford’s Trestin Thurman was the game’s top scorer with 17 points, while Jackson Obregon led Sallisaw with 11 points.
Sallisaw 12 10 13 13 –49 Mannford 15 12 12 13 –52 SALLISAW – Jackson Obregon 11, Sim Kilpatrick 10, Parker Jackson 8, Broderick Cameron 8, Cooper Carter 6, Cooper Jackson 2, Braxton Lamb 2, Max Stump 1.
