The Warrenton Lady Warriors were able to stay within striking distance against defending state champion Whitfield for one half but ultimately fell 44-27 in Saturday’s Class 5 state quarterfinal …
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The Warrenton Lady Warriors were able to stay within striking distance against defending state champion Whitfield for one half but ultimately fell 44-27 in Saturday’s Class 5 state quarterfinal at the St. Louis Community College Meramec campus.
After defeating St. Dominic High School to win the district title, the Lady Warriors squared off with Whitfield Saturday in the state tournament quarterfinals with a trip to the state semifinals on the line. The Lady Warriors were able to stay in the game in the first half but a strong third quarter by Whitfield put the game out of reach.
Warrenton fell behind early in the game and trailed by eight points at the end of the first quarter. With the game tied 4-4, Whitfield used a 10-0 first quarter run to take a 14-4 lead late in the quarter. Whitfield led 14-6 after the first quarter.
Warrenton responded in the second quarter, trimming the Whitfield lead to as few as three points in the second quarter. A two-point basket by senior Garneisha Love and a three-pointer from junior Audrey Payne pulled the Lady Warriors within three points at 14-11. Whitfield extended their lead late in the second quarter and led Warrenton 20-13 at halftime.
“We tried to use our offense to kind of slow them down and keep them out of it,” Warrenton girls basketball coach Greg Williams said. “We were doing a good job. We had a couple turnovers that ended in transition breakaways. They hit a three. So it’s 14 (points) but then we only allowed them to score six in the second quarter. So that was good.”
Whitfield outscored Warrenton 13-4 in the third quarter to lead by 16 points after three quarters. Whitfield started the quarter on a 8-2 run to take a 28-15 lead. They led 33-17 at the end of the third quarter.
“We just really couldn’t execute and make shots,” Williams said. “At the half, we’re looking at it 20-13, we’re only down seven. It’s working…And then we just kind of got blown out in the third quarter. We couldn’t score and made some turnovers. And then it just got away from us.”
Williams credited Whitfield, noting they were the defending Class 5 state champions. He said Warrenton had Whitfield on the ropes early but “just let them off the hook.”
Warrenton junior Kaelyn Meyer led the Lady Warriors in scoring with 10 points. Senior Garneisha Love added nine points. Kendall Taylor scored five points. Payne added three points.
Despite the loss to end the season, Williams spoke positively about the season. He noted Warrenton won more than twice as many games as they did last season.
“We had a great season. Great season,” Williams said. “We won eight games last year and to win 17, we over doubled up…And the kids fought hard. And winning a district championship at home. Five in eight years. That’s really cool.”
