Taking the shot
Baylee Webb sinks a runner in the lane for two of her 16 points
in Woodville’s victory over Plainview that kept the Panthers unbeaten
Woodville girls basketball head coach Joey Swinford preached defense to his players all off-season.
They apparently got the message.
The Panthers forced 33 Plainview turnovers, held the Bears without a basket for 12:41 time span and then hung on late for a 49-44 win Thursday at Pisgah High School.
"I told the girls this summer I didn't care what we did on offense, but I was sick of teams putting up so many points against us," Swinford said. "I'm ecstatic with the defense. I knew (Plainview) had a lot of good ball handlers. I worried should we press them. I've got a lot of trust in the girls and the pressure they can put on teams. We created a lot of turnovers and we took advantage."
Woodville point guard Baylee Webb led all scorers with 16 points while also totaling seven assists and five rebounds. Bri Geiger sank three 3-pointers and closed with 13 points, and Emily Huston had 11 points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Montana Clark scored 13 points for Plainview (1-1) while Taylor Haynes and Macy Thompson had 11 each.
Woodville (2-0) held 3A Plainview scoreless for the final 7:14 of the first half, taking a 21-16 lead to halftime on Webb's off-balanced leaner in the closing seconds. The Panthers stretched their lead to 30-19 in the third quarter and eventually took a 45-26 advantage following Huston's basket with 3:18 remaining.
But just when it looked as if the Panthers would cruise to a win, Plainview mustered a last-minute flourish.
The Bears went on a 12-0 run over the next 1:22, pulling within 45-38 with 1:46 remaining after Clark's 3-pointer. Webb's two free throws finally ended the Panthers' scoreless streak, but Plainview wasn't finished, getting within 47-44 with 11.2 seconds remaining on a jumper from Haynes. But Webb sealed the win for Woodville by sinking two more free throws with 10 seconds left.
We had an almost 20 point lead and kind of choked it away, but they stepped up big at the end," Swinford said.
