Derrick Webb, Managing Editor
Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
WAVERLY — Piketon has never backed down from a challenge.
And if you thought that trend was going to end on Saturday, you just don’t know ball.
With a gritty, hard-fought effort, the Redstreaks (19-5) kicked the door open to a district final appearance with a 48-35 win over Wheelersburg in a Division V district semifinal.
Point proven. Statement made.
Piketon has now put itself in prime position to win a district championship — a feat the program hasn’t accomplished since 1986.
“We started [preparing for Wheelersburg] in practice on Monday,” Piketon’s Jaylin Forbes said. “We had fun, obviously, but we came in locked in. We all knew that we had to come in and play [well]. Practice had a lot to do with that. We got here and we were all on the same page. We knew it was going to be a good night.”
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
Forbes was steady as always, using her nonstop motor to attack the Pirates’ defense and create ways to score.
However, in an overall scoring sense, the night undoubtedly belonged to junior Reese Shanks.
A constant thorn in Wheelersburg’s collective side, Shanks played to perfection, collecting a game-high 15 points alongside 10 rebounds.
“[Shanks] is super important for our team,” Piketon’s Laila Kelley said. “She can get into the lane, honestly, any time she wants to. She’s aggressive, she makes free throws and just overall, she’s a great asset to our team.”
While Shanks was a focal point offensively, the entire team took center stage on the defensive end. The ‘Streaks put a limit to Wheelersburg’s Peyton May’s touches inside the paint and, when the senior did get an open look, they closed the gap quickly.
Overall, the Pirates (14-9) hit six 3-point field goals but had just five scores from inside the 3-point arc — a stark difference from what they’re used to.
“We watched film from Waverly and Waverly kind of took away the 3 [from Wheelersburg],” Forbes said. “But we wanted to try and have them beat us from 3, so we played inside more and took away the post. We obviously got that done.”
Jaylinn Prather started the night with a bang, hitting a triple to give the Pirates an early 3-0 lead. Shanks then scored the Redstreaks’ first bucket at the 6:35 mark of the first quarter, just before she scored again, to make it 4-4 with 5:34 to play.
Wheelersburg got another 3 from freshman Lainey Skeenes, but after a free throw each from Shanks and Briar Penwell, Kelley put Piketon in front at 8-7 with a lay-in.
PHOTOS: Images from Piketon’s district semifinal win over Wheelersburg
Forbes followed Kelley, scoring with 21.1 seconds left, and Wheelersburg’s Ava Artrip provided an answer on the other end to send the game into the second frame with Piketon leading 10-9.
Piketon’s Hadyn Daniels hit two free throws to begin the second, followed by scores from Penwell, Forbes and Kelley for an 18-9 score, capping an 8-0 run with 1:28 left before halftime.
That, in itself, was the turning point.
Wheelersburg never trimmed the deficit to less than four points throughout the rest of the evening.
Prather ended the run with a 3-ball and Artrip hit the back end of a pair of freebies. But Penwell nailed a jumper with 6.9 seconds to go, giving Piketon a 20-13 lead at the break.
“In the last three years, we won our first tournament game and then won our second. So it’s really nice to be able to win the second game,” Shanks said. “We’ve worked really hard this season and we’re just trying to take it game-by-game.”
Prather began the third with a bucket but that was immediately followed by a 3 from Maddie Hale and a mid-range jumper from Kelley in transition, pushing the edge to 25-15 with 5:19 left.
The Pirates then ripped off a 10-4 run, thanks to Skeenes, Myles Bailey, Callie DeHart and Prather, who ended the run with another 3 at the 1:25 mark for a 29-25 count.
But Shanks followed that run with back-to-back scores, the last of which came with 3.2 seconds remaining to put the ‘Streaks in front, 33-25, heading to the fourth.
Not much changed in the final eight minutes, either.
Piketon retained at least a six-point lead throughout the quarter before Shanks scored at the 1:42 mark to make it 46-35. From there, Daniels nailed two free throws to put the icing on the victory cake.
Statistically, following Shanks’ double-double was Forbes, who had 12 points, eight rebounds and two assists, while Kelley added six points, four rebounds and two helpers. Briar Penwell also had a hand in the win, scoring seven points off the bench.
Piketon won the battle on the glass as well, out-rebounding Wheelersburg by a 29-27 margin.
“[Wheelersburg’s Peyton May] can rebound the ball really well, so we wanted to keep her off the glass,” Kelley said. “Our post players, Hadyn Daniels, Briar Penwell and Taylor Roberts, did outstanding to keep her off the boards. We knew she was a left-handed shooter, and we knew that’s her strength. So we tried to take that away from here and they did a really good job of it.”
The Pirates were paced by Prather, who ended the night with 13 points, while DeHart posted seven points and seven rebounds.
As Wheelersburg’s season comes to a close, the Redstreaks advance to a Division V district championship game at 5 p.m., Saturday back at Waverly’s Downtown Gym.
They’ll meet with Eastern Brown, who topped Alexander by a 62-40 final to advance.
“I think the drive, the motivation for us … We have a bigger purpose this year as our JV coach [Walt Woodruff] has had some health issues,” Kelley said. “He’s our purpose right now. We’re playing for him.”
SPONSORS
MEGAN CARROLL — STATE FARM INSURANCE
HOMELAND CREDIT UNION
