Hawks step up

Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Dec 19, 2003 by Amy Donaldson Deseret Morning News

OGDEN -- The free-throw line is known as the charity stripe because points should come freely for a player who shoots from the spot.

The Ogden Tigers girls basketball team clearly doesn't like charity.

In the fourth quarter of Ogden's game against the North Sanpete Hawks on Thursday, the team missed four of seven chances when just one or two points separated the squads.

"It's not just free-throw shooting; it's our whole mental game," said Ogden coach Phil Russell after the Hawks won 60-53. "We have all the talent in the world and we fritter it away. I'll bet we missed 20 shots inside the key. We could build onto this school with the bricks we threw up . . . It's so frustrating to know what they have."

To add insult to Russell's injury, the team focused on shooting drills in practice Wednesday.

"All we did yesterday was shoot," he said, noting that one player, Shaylee Stegen, seemed to benefit as she finished with 11 points.

The Tigers had trouble holding onto the ball, and while some of it was due to the Hawks' defense, some of it was unwise passing.

"Angel (Gomez) and Katie (Adams) have to take care of the ball better," he said, noting there was too much showmanship at times. "There's a time for that kind of play, but it's not during crunch time."

The Hawks have struggled with free throw shooting this season, but looked almost perfect Thursday. Kali Larsen led a frenetic effort in the fourth quarter, and she finished with 19 points and 12 rebounds. She missed just one free throw in the fourth quarter.

"We've struggled a bit with that," said coach Cheryl Hadley. Most of the players on the court Thursday night also played on the school's volleyball team, which won the 3A championship. "I think that experience of that type of competition helped them. That mental toughness. We had trouble finishing games last year."

Not so this year, as the team improved to 5-1 despite dealing with a lot of illnesses. Another bright spot for the Hawks was the play of Alison Hamilton. She finished with 15 points, but had three key 3- point shots and two big fourth-quarter steals.

"She hasn't been scoring for us," Hadley said. "I think it was a confidence thing. But she stepped up tonight and did it for us."

Jessica Aagard added 12 points, while Bree Jensen-Riet scored nine.

Ogden's offense was led by Katie Adams, who finished with a game- high 26 points, while Gomez added eight points.

While North Sanpete hopes to keep doing what it did Thursday, Ogden needs to find a way to use its talent to win.

"We just lose sight of what we want to accomplish," Russell said. "It's not about looking good individually, it's to win."

BOYS' GAMES

NONREGION

WEST JORDAN 59, DAVIS 51: Lance Larsen scored 17 and Jordan Jacobs had 16 as the Jaguars held off the Darts. West Jordan hit 17-of-19 free throws. Ryan Flint, Tyler Sargent and Payden Van Brocklin all had 13 points for Davis.

VIEWMONT 36, PINE VIEW 34: The Vikings earned a tough road win as they defeated the Panthers in St. George behind Sol Jensen's 15 points.

MONUMENT VALLEY, ARIZ. 65, MONUMENT VALLEY 60: Monument Valley squared off against their Monument Valley, Ariz., counterpart which saw the Arizona squad earn the victory. Jose Herrera led the Cougars with 25 points in the loss.

DUCHESNE 68, INDEPENDENCE, NEV. 43: The fourth-ranked Eagles remained undefeated by defeating Independence, Nev. in the Wendover Tournament. Landon Depain led Duchesne with 17 points.

TABIONA 65, WEST WENDOVER 56: The Tigers improved to 5-1 on the season as they knocked off West Wendover behind Eddie Jones' 19 points. Kade Brown scored 25 to lead West Wendover.

DIXIE 74, MOUNTAIN VIEW CHRISTIAN (NEV.) 31: The Flyers held Mountain View Christian, Nev., to nine field goals in a victory at the Page, Ariz. tournament. Brian Knell scored 18 points and Collin Liston had 15, including three 3-pointers. Dixie will play Red Mountain, Ariz., Friday.

HILLCREST 59, KEARNS 51: Vince Hights scored 20 points and Kyle Kennison added 15 as Hillcrest edged Kearns.

UNION 55, STAR VALLEY, WYO. 42: Shane Morrill had 14 points and nine rebounds to lead the Cougars over Star Valley, Wyo.

GIRLS' GAMES

REGION 15

PANGUITCH 55, WAYNE 45: Sophomore guard Chelsea Birch scored 17 points for Panguitch in a big win over Region 15 foe Wayne.

BRYCE VALLEY 63, PIUTE 31: Christina Cantu scored 27 points for Bryce Valley in a lopsided win over Piute.

VALLEY 67, MILFORD 56: Jana Glover scored 24 points for Valley in a Region 15 victory over Milford.

REGION 16 N.

MANILA 53, TABIONA 36: Stephanie Anderson scored 12 points and grabbed 13 rebounds while Christie Gardner added five points and 10 rebounds for Manila in a win over Tabiona.

REGION 17 N.

ST. JOSEPH 82, CHRISTIAN HERITAGE 15: Katie McEntee had 10 points and 10 assists to lead St. Joseph to an easy win over Christian Heritage.

LAYTON CHRISTIAN 87, OAKLEY 8: Marquina Gilliam scored 19 points to lead the Eagles over the Explorers. Layton Christian had five scorers in double figures.

REGION 18

TINTIC 49, EAST CARBON 37: Emily Carter scored a game-high 19 points to lead the Miners over the Vikings.