Lady Dogs take Substate championship in overtime

Published 10:47 pm Sunday, March 5, 2023

By Allen LaMountain

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Senior point guard Madison McClain’s drive to the bucket with 12.3 seconds left in overtime helped stake Hampton to a 65-61 win over Harriman in the Substate championship on Saturday at Van Huss / White gymnasium.
McClain hit the layup and was fouled and her three-point play gave the Lady Bulldogs a 64-61 lead and her subsequent free throw after a steal by fellow senior Linsey Jenkins clinched the win.
“My teammates spread it out and that gave me a lane,” McClain said. “I am so proud of where we are now and where we came from. I literally can’t believe it. Our ‘d’ was big. We started slow early and had some fouls, but we had to push through that. It is very exciting.”
The Lady ‘Dogs (30-2) led 15-9 after one quarter was in the books and built a 29-24 halftime advantage but the Lady Blue Devils post Skyler Johnson led a second-half surge that made things difficult for Hampton.
“Harriman has two really good players that are both strong and finish well,” Lady Bulldogs head coach Brandon Carpenter said. “I couldn’t be more proud of these girls. Madi took the game over and made the shots a senior needs to make.”
The ‘Dogs took a 39-35 advantage into the fourth quarter but the Lady Devils made a strong comeback effort in the stanza. After a bucket from sophomore guard Piper Helle gave Hampton a 41-35 lead, the Devils went on a 10-0 run with Johnson and Addison Oliver leading the charge.
Oliver hit a pair from the charity stripe and Johnson had a deuce and a pair of free throws as Harriman tied the game at 41-41 with 5:27 left in regulation. The run continued with Johnson and Oliver each canning a bucket for a 45-41 Blue Devils lead with 4:01 remaining.
McClain dropped in a trey to stop the bleeding for Hampton and make it a one-point game and Helle scored a bucket in the paint as Hampton retook the lead at 46-45. The lead swung to Harriman once again as Johnson was good for a pair of shots from the line but Jenkins scored a deuce for the ‘Dogs to make it a 48-47 contest.
With the score knotted at 51-51, Harriman had one last defensive stop in Hampton’s end and a deflection saw the ball roll across the end line as the buzzer sounded.
In the overtime session, the teams traded the lead back and forth until Kendal Mason made two free throws for the Devils and Johnson did so as well to give Harriman a 61-58 advantage. McClain made her fourth triple of the game to tie the score once again and after a steal by Jenkins, McClain looked for an opening and drove the lane for the hoop and the harm and she came through.
Another turnover by Harriman and a free throw from McClain sealed the deal. In the overtime, McClain and junior forward Macy Henry scored all 13 of Hampton’s points.
McClain had a team-high 23 points with Henry adding 17 and Helle chipped in with 11 and for Harriman, Johnson had a game-high 25 points with Oliver adding 17 and Mason 13.
“I am so proud,” Jenkins said. “We have dreamed of this for so long and I knew there was no way we were going to lose on this court. I always say there’s no way we lose at home.”
Region 1A championship
Hampton 65-61 (OT)
Harriman (61)
Wilson 2, Mason 13, Johnson 25, Humphrey 4, Oliver 17.
Hampton (65)
Helle 11, McClain 23, Henry 17, Jenkins 8, Berry 3, Nickels 3.
Harriman 9 15 11 17 9 – 61
Hampton 15 14 10 13 13 – 65
3-point goals: Harriman 4 (Mason 4), Hampton 6 (McClain 4, Berry 1, Nickels 1)

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