Awarding some Regional ribbons – Part I

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>PARKERSBURG - The stage is set for next week's state tournament in Charleston. After weeks of regular-season play and a two-week postseason, thirty-two regional co-champions from four classes finally descend on the Coliseum and Convention Center, but only four groups will walk away as winners. Take a look at some of the girls who helped get their teams there as well as those players who did everything they could in the attempt: </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='153421' first='Sydney' last='Baird'], Webster County, CG, 5-7, Sr. </strong>- The fourth quarter began and Webster County sat in a bit of a pickle. James Monroe hadn't gone away like they hoped. In fact, the Mavericks successfully answered punch after punch. The Highlanders needed something big to happen. And then BOOM it happened. [player_tooltip player_id='153421' first='Sydney' last='Baird'] went off. Plain and simple. Over the next eight minutes, the senior did exactly what she's developed a reputation for over the last four years. She scored. She scored, a lot. She scored so much that by the time she was done, she had single-handily thrust the Highlanders into a permanent lead and back to the state tournament. Her 23 points in the final period pushed her Highlanders past the Mavericks and on to Charleston for the third time in four years. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Ana Young, Pendleton County, CG, 5-8, Sr. </strong>- Someone stop that Wildcat! Seriously! Those are the words that should have been uttered by the Union coaches early and often through the first three quarters. They should have been shouted in the first quarter. They should have been screamed in the second quarter. And they should have been repeated so many times in the third quarter that they were heard on every play. Afterall, Pendleton County's Ana Young came in among the state's leading scorers and it should have been pointed out to everyone. Yet, the words weren't uttered enough and Young took advantage. When she got the opportunity, she scored. When she could cause trouble for the Tigers, she swiped and swiped and swiped. By the time she was done, it was all over but the crying. Young tallied a ridiculous 33 points, 6 steals, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists in just three quarters of play against the Tigers. Someone set up a stop sign!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":381558,"width":305,"height":200,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/01/Jayda-Allie-scaled-crop-1903x1250-1643388422.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-381558" width="305" height="200" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='153410' first='Jayda' last='Allie'], Cabell Midland, SG, 5-8, Sr.</strong> - Don't put [player_tooltip player_id='153410' first='Jayda' last='Allie'] at the line in the final 61 seconds of any game, folks. Seriously, don't do it. Let the clock wind down. Let her dribble while you try to push her out-of-bounds. Do anything but send her to the line, or you will end up trailing by two, four, six ... however many times she goes to the line. Or in other words, you'll likely end up like St. Albans. Following a chunk of time where the Red Dragons led, they found themselves in need of late fouls after Cabell Midland fought back and took a late lead. Allie made them regret it. Dearly. With the ice-in-her-veins mentality that has been molded by playing with some of the best players in the country on the Thunder, she cooled off the Dragons by making 6 of 6 free throws in the final 61 seconds, thus propelling the Knights to yet another state tournament berth. Each shot made it that much harder for the Dragons to respond. Each point pushed the lead up again and again. And in the end, the Red Dragons failed to answer and fell at the hand of Allie at the charity stripe. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='387358' first='Lexi' last='Adams'], Washington, SG, 5-8, So.</strong> - [player_tooltip player_id='387358' first='Lexi' last='Adams'] came alive at the right time. Just the right time, indeed. Any later and the Patriots may now be sitting at home, but they aren't. They aren't because Adams led them to victory. Even while dealing with a bum knee and a few nagging injuries, she slashed and dashed through the line, she twirled and swirled around defenders, and she twisted and squeezed to the rim and scored. She sliced into Martinsburg's lead each time. The points added up fast. 2 points. 4 points. 6 points. 12 points. By the time she was done, she'd led the Patriots back from the brink of defeat and onto the their first state tournament appearance in program history. Her fourth quarter outburst staved off elimination and propelled the Patriots on to Charleston. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hallie Bailey, Spring Valley, CG, 5-6, Sr.</strong> - Hallie Bailey didn't want her high school career to come to an end. Not yet. Not one bit. When the end came, if it came before the last game, she wanted to remember she tried everything she could to keep it alive. Mission accomplished. She scored when she needed to score. She led when she needed to lead. She played her point guard position when her group needed their leader. If this was to be the end, it would be a glorious end. As it turned out, it wasn't the end. But, just the beginning of one last hurrah. Bailey piloted her Spring Valley Timberwolves to a 58-49 win over Parkersburg. Bailey scored 16 points, pulled down five boards, grabbed 2 assists and as many steals and pushed the Wayne County team on to the state tournament. By equally distributing the ball and doing what she hasn't quite been known for by the second time in as many games, she helped keep the Big Reds off balance. They never knew where the scoring was coming from. They never knew who might be getting the ball from Bailey for another pass. They simply never knew Spring Valley's game plan. Bailey effortlessly led her team through one, two, three and then four quarters. She directed her troops. She shouted out orders. And she wouldn't take no for an answer. In the end, it all proved too much for the Big Reds too overcome. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->