Rogers 66, Van Buren 59 (OT)

Junior London Hatch sank 5 of 6 free throws in the final 1:23 of overtime Friday night, and finished with a game-high 17 to lead the Rogers girls to a 6A West Conference victory over Van Buren. The Lady Mounties (13-7, 5-3) outscored the Lady Pointers (10-11, 3-5), 13-6 in the overtime period. "We made some things hard on ourselves at times tonight, but I'm so proud of our girls for making adjustments and making some big shots down the stretch," Rogers coach Preston Early said. "We had prepared our kids for a game like this for the past three days, because you know it's a possibility with two evenly matched teams. We answered, they answered." Hatch sank a pair of 3-pointers in the first quarter, as the Lady Mounties jumped out to an early 21-12 lead. As a team, Rogers hit four from beyond the arc in the opening period and 11 for the game. "I thought we shot it well tonight and were able to find some open looks," Early said. Van Buren battled back in the second quarter with a 13-8 advantage. Rylee Ryan drilled a 3-pointer, then converted a layup to give the Lady Pointers their first lead, 33-32, with 5:13 left in the third quarter. After Kaleigh Evans began the fourth quarter with a three from the wing to give Van Buren a 43-42 lead, Rogers went on a 9-0 run with three straight triples -- two from Kate McConnell and one from Hatch. Van Buren finished regulation on a 12-2 run, tying it at 53-53 on Olivia Schnakenberg's short jumper with 12 seconds left. Sophomore Nadayah Cates, playing in her first game since injuring her knee early in the season, hit a key 3-pointer in overtime, as the Lady Mounties took a 59-54 lead midway through the period and never looked back. Cates finished with 13. McConnell and Gracie Carr had 11 each. Emmalee Greebe paced Van Buren with a team-high 16. Schnakenberg had 13, and Lexi Miller finished with 11. Rogers 21 8 13 11 13 -- 66 Van Buren 12 13 15 13 6 -- 59 Rogers (13-7, 5-3): Hatch 17, Cates 13, Carr 11, McConnell 11, Storey 10, Figenskau 2. Van Buren (10-11, 3-5): Greebe 16, Schnakenberg 13, Miller 11, Ryan 8, Evans 8, Porter 3.

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ROGERS 66, VAN BUREN 59 (OT)

RICK FIRES

Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette | 2/2/2019

PHOTO CREDIT: Rogers High School Athletics