The Miami Trace Lady Panthers hosted the always-challenging Unioto Lady Shermans for a non-conference contest Saturday, Feb. 1.
Miami Trace trailed by nine points with 6:56 to play in the third quarter.
From there they rallied to defeat Unioto, 49-42.
It was Senior Day and Miami Trace recognized its three seniors, Aubrey McCoy, Grace Bapst and Shaylee McDonald, prior to the varsity game.
McDonald entered the game needing 26 points to reach 1,000 for her career.
She ended up as the game’s leading scorer with 20 points.
McDonald currently has 994 career points and can surpass the 1,000-point mark Wednesday night when Miami Trace hosts the Lady Mustangs of Lynchburg-Clay High School. The j-v game starts that night at 5:30 p.m.
McDonald also led Miami Trace with eight rebounds and five assists.
Sophomore Libby Aleshire was next with nine points.
Junior Delaney Eakins had eight points and junior Magarah Bloom scored seven. Bloom was second on the team with five rebounds.
Senior Amber Cottrill led Unioto with 16 points and senior Emily Coleman had 14 points.
“Our kids just keep battling,” Miami Trace head coach Ben Ackley said. “They believe in one another and they play as one. That’s kind of been the motto of this team all year — finish.
“It seems like we don’t lead (very often) at the half,” Ackley said. “We just keep grinding and continue to find ways. It’s not our last home game, but it’s a great way to send these seniors off today.
“I’m just very proud of the group,” Ackley said.
“We thought they had four kids that could hurt us on the perimeter coming off ball screens,” Ackley said. “That was a major concern, but, our kids did a very good job.”
“I told the girls after the game, that’s probably a District-level type game,” Unioto head coach Jeff Miller said. “That’s two good teams going at it and you aren’t going to see one team run away from the other. We had our leads and they had their leads. It went back and forth.
“They made some really big plays when they needed it there in the fourth quarter,” Miller said. “We finally came back and took the lead. They knocked down a three there in the corner. That was a big shot. They got up a few and we had to foul and we end up with a seven-point loss.
“We’ll go back and watch the film, learn from our mistakes and move on,” Miller said.
The game was tied twice in the first quarter.
Miami Trace led briefly at 8-7 after a three-point basket from freshman Hillery Jacobs.
Unioto led 15-10 at the end of the first quarter.
The Shermans played with the lead in the second quarter, being up by as many as eight points at one juncture.
Unioto went off the floor at the half with a 25-21 lead.
The visitors scored the first five points of the third quarter to take a game-high 9-point lead just over one minute into the second half.
From that point forward, Miami Trace outscored Unioto, 27-12.
By the end of the third quarter, Miami Trace had erased much of the deficit, trailing 35-34.
Miami Trace took the lead, 36-35 on a bucket by Eakins at the 5:09 mark of the fourth quarter.
The game stayed close as the action continued.
An old-fashioned three-point play by Coleman made it 41-40, Miami Trace with 3:34 to play.
Unioto then made two free throws to go in front, 42-41.
Bloom hit a crucial three-point shot with 2:14 to play, putting Miami Trace back on top, 44-42.
McDonald made 5 of 8 free throws down the stretch, while Unioto did not score again to set the final at 49-42.
Unioto (18-3) is at Paint Valley Thursday. The Lady Shermans have already clinched the Scioto Valley Conference title. A win Thursday would give Unioto an undefeated conference record.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
MT 10 11 13 15 — 49
U 15 10 10 7 — 42
MIAMI TRACE — Aubrey McCoy 0-0-0; Shay McDonald 4 (1)-9-20; Magarah Bloom 0 (2)-1-7; Libby Aleshire 4-1-9; Gracey Ferguson 1-0-2; Hillery Jacobs 0 (1)-0-3; Grace Bapst 0-0-0; Emma Pitstick 0-0-0; Delaney Eakins 4-0-8. TOTALS — 13 (4)-11-49. Free throw shooting: 11 of 20 for 55 percent. Three-point field goals: Bloom, 2; McDonald, Jacobs. Field goal shooting: 17 of 37 for 46 percent. Three-point field goal shooting; 4 of 11 for 36 percent. Rebounds: 27 (6 offensive). Assists: 9. Steals: 4. Turnovers: 15.
UNIOTO — Paris Debord 0-0-0; Hallie Pinkerton 0 (2)-0-6; Karlee Renner 0-0-0; Emily Coleman 2 (2)-4-14; Jerzi Paul 0-0-0; Amber Cottrill 4 (2)-2-16; Avery Miller 2-0-4; Cree Stulley 1-0-2. TOTALS — 9 (6)-6-42. Free throw shooting: 6 of 8 for 75 percent. Three-point field goals: Pinkerton, 2; Coleman, 2; Cottrill, 2. Field goal shooting: 15 of 38 for 39 percent. Three-point field goal shooting: 6 of 22 for 27 percent. Offensive rebounds: 8. Turnovers: 13.
MT wins j-v game with Unioto
In the j-v game Saturday, Miami Trace improved to 13-5 overall with a 37-27 victory over Unioto.
Hillary McCoy was the game’s leading scorer for Miami Trace with 11 points. She hit her team’s only three-point field goal.
Addy Little and Mallory Lovett both scored six points for Miami Trace, Sidney Payton had five, Mallory Pavey scored four, Audrey Craig had three and Kate Hicks scored two.
Addison Mohan led Unioto with nine points and Sophie Coleman scored seven.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
MT 6 12 12 7 — 37
U 4 9 4 10 — 27
