Lady Pirates rout Heavener for third place
The Preston Pirate varsity basketball program needed every second Saturday to capture the team championship trophy at the Freedom Ford Shootout at Savanna High School.
The Pirates got a pair of free throws from Giorgio Dunn-Spencer with 1:23 remaining in regulation, then watched as a Kinta player missed a pair of charity tosses with 0.9 seconds left to hold on for the 31-30 victory and capture the championship trophy.
The Preston girls varsity basketball team took home the third-place plaque from the 3-day tournament on Saturday with a 63-33 thrashing of the Heavener Lady Wolves in the girls third-place contest.
The Preston cage squads closed out the first-half portion of their regu- lar-season schedule Monday with a trip to Eufaula for a showdown with the Eufaula Ironheads and Lady Ironheads.
At Savanna, the Pirates advanced to Saturday’s title contest with a 78-41 victory over Heavener in last Thursday’s semifinal round, while the Lady Pirates saw their bid for a tournament championship fall by the wayside last Thursday with a heartbreaking 37-36 loss to Pittsburg in the girls semifinal bracket contest.
Below are summaries from the Preston varsity basketball program’s final two games at the Freedom Ford Shootout at Savanna High School.
— Girls Bracket Semifinals
Pittsburg 37, Preston 36
The Lady Pirates trailed 8-7 after the first eight minutes of action, then took a narrow 18-17 lead into the intermission after escaping the second period with an 11-9 advantage. The Preston ladies doubled their lead, 25-23, with a 7-6 margin in the third quarter. Pittsburg led 37-33 late in the final frame with Preston’s Anistyn Garner, who was named to the All-Tournament Team, draining a 3-pointer in the final seconds to make the final outcome, 37-36, in favor of Pittsburg.
Garner led the way offensively for the Lady Pirates in the semifinal loss with a team-high 12 points. Emilie Stidman just missed double-digit scoring for Preston in the setback with nine. Other Lady Pirate scorers against Pittsburg were Savannah King with seven, Taylan Starr and Josie Cope three each, and Shaunassi Jordan two.
— Third Place
Preston 63, Heavener 33
The Lady Pirates took the opening frame by a 2111 margin, then outscored the Lady Wolves 13-8 in the second stanza for a commanding 34-19 halftime advantage. The Preston ladies pushed their lead further out of reach at 50-22, heading into the final eight minutes of regulation after coming out of the third quarter with a 16-3 margin. The Lady Pirates finished off the decisive 30-point victory with a narrow 13-11 advantage in the final frame.
Anistyn Garner led a trio of double-digit scorers for Preston in the decisive win with a team-best 19 points. Savannah King (13) and Shaunassi Jordan (12) joined Garner in double figures in the victory. Other Lady Pirate offensive contributors against Heavener were Emilie Stidman and Pheobey Finch with four each, Josie Cope three, and Heaven Fuller two.
— Boys Bracket Semifinals
Preston 78, Heavener 41
The Pirates led 20-14 after one and 41-25 at halftime. The Preston squad increased their lead to 33 points, 67-34, with eight minutes remaining in regulation after a 26-9 advantage in the third period. The Pirates finished the dominating 37-point win with an 11-7 margin in the final frame.
Giorgio Dunn-Spencer led a quartet of Preston players in double-figure scoring in the semifinal win with a team-high 22 points. Other double-digit scorers for the Pirates against Heavener were Tanner Young with 16, Jervais Goree 14, and Kent Rice 11. Other Preston scorers in the semifinal victory were Jayden Smith with seven, Hunter McElhannon and Damarion Cottrell three each, and Pheonix Finch two.
— Championship
Preston 31, Kinta 30
Kinta came out of the opening frame with a narrow 8-7 margin, while Preston took the second stanza by a 10-9 advantage to deadlock the score at 17-17 at halftime. The Pirates came out of the third quarter with an 8-6 margin to take a 25-23 lead into the final eight minutes of regulation. Kinta scored a basket with 2:08 left in regulation for a 30-29 advantage, then Giorgio Dunn-Spencer, who led Preston in scoring with nine points, sank a pair of free throws with 1:23 left for a 31-30 Preston lead. Kinta missed a pair of free throws with 0.9 seconds remaining with a Pirate player snaring the rebound and running out the remaining time off the gameclock to preserve the narrow 31-30 victory and the tournament championship.
Dunn-Spencer was joined in the Preston scorebooks by Jervais Goree, Tanner Young, and Jayden Smith with six points apiece and Kent Rice and Ethan Moore two each.
— Freedom Ford Shootout Girls Bracket Semifinals
Pittsburg 37, Preston 36
Preston: 7 – 11 – 7 – 11 (36) Pittsburg: 8 – 9 – 6 – 14 (37) Preston Scoring: Anistyn Garner 12, Emilie Stidman 9, Savannah King 7, Taylan Starr 3, Josie Cope 3, Shaunassi Jordan 2.
— Third Place
Preston 63, Heavener 33
Preston: 21 – 13 – 16 – 13 (63) Heavener: 11 – 8 – 3 – 11 (33) Preston Scoring: Anistyn Garner 19, Savannah King 13, Shaunassi Jordan 12, Taylan Starr 6, Emilie Stidman 4, Pheobey Finch 4, Josie Cope 3, Heaven Fuller 2.
— Boys Bracket Semifinals
Preston 78, Heavener 41
Heavener: 14 – 11 – 9 – 7 (41) Preston: 20 – 21 – 26 – 11 (78) Preston Scoring: Giorgio Dunn-Spencer 22, Tanner Young 16, Jervais Goree 14, Kent Rice 11, Jayden Smith 7, Hunter McElhannon 3, Damarion Cottrell 3, Pheonix Finch 2.
— Championship
Preston 31, Kinta 30
Kinta: 8 – 9 – 6 – 7 (30) Preston: 7 – 10 – 8 – 6 (31) Preston Scoring: Giorgio Dunn-Spencer 9, Jervais Goree 6, Tanner Young 6, Jayden Smith 6, Kent Rice 2, Ethan Moore 2.
