Powhatan’s season ends in defensive nailbiter

Correspondent

Special

Two teams took to the court at Mechanicsville High School Friday night looking to extend their seasons in the first round of the Class 4, Region B Girls Basketball Tournament. They took two divergent paths to get there.

For the visiting Powhatan Indians, a postseason run would give valuable experience to a very young team who spent most of their offseason learning under a new head coach.

For the Mechanicsville Mustangs, it was a chance to save what was once a renaissance season from plunging into obscurity. Two weeks earlier, Mechanicsville was the No. 2 seed in Region 4B, but the loss of senior Bennett Carlton to injury late in the season saw the Mustangs struggle and fall to sixth place, setting up the match with the 11-seeded Indians.

In a game where offensive opportunities were few, it was Carlton who put her team on her back, scoring 20 points to help Mechanicsville outlast Powhatan, 35-33. It was her first game back for the Mustangs.

“I was so excited when the doctor told me I could play,” Carlton recalled. “I wanted to bring my team together and bring that leadership.”

Carlton started hot, scoring nine of her 20 points in the first period, helping the Mustangs (176) to a 13-9 lead after one quarter. The home fans held their breath when Carlton went down hard, hurting her left ankle. But, minutes later, she returned to action.

Angst returned to the Mustang bench when Kate Carlton picked up her third foul with 4:25 left in the half, leading 19-11. That’s when Powhatan made a late move, cutting the deficit to three points at halftime down 21-18. Junior Katherine Cerullo led the charge, scoring nine of her 10 points before intermission.

The third period belonged to Powhatan’s Emma Terry. With Mechanicsville starting the stanza on a 5-0 run to increase its lead to eight, the sophomore drained a 3-pointer, then forced back-toback turnovers, turning them into easy lay-ups for a personal 7-0 run. Powhatan took the lead briefly at 27-26, but Kate Carlton’s free throws as the quarter ended gave the Mustangs the 28-27 edge.

Cerullo tied it with a free throw with 6:34 left, then Powhatan tied the game once more at 30-30. Defense dominated the final quarter, as Bennett Carlton wasn’t able to break the tie until 1:41 left in the contest. Then, an important feed in the paint to sophomore Elizabeth Hardwick gave the Mustang her only field goal of the night, but a big one, increasing the lead to 34-30 with a minute to play.

Powhatan’s Corynn Lampman drilled a trey with 18 seconds left to draw the Indians within a point. Having to foul, Powhatan sent Ashley Owens to the line, who made one free throw for a 35-33 lead with 2.9 seconds left.

Cerullo received the inbounds pass, made it just past half-court, but her shot at the horn only hit the backboard. Mechanicsville had finally experienced victory after losing five of its last six games.

It was a tough way to end the season for Powhatan, but knowing that 31 of the team’s 33 points were scored by underclassmen underscores the bright future ahead for

Please see MusTanGs, Page B2

PHOTOS BY ROBBY FLETCHER