Heavener girls, Spiro boys win

By CRAIG HALL
SPIRO—Heavener’s girls and Spiro’s boys moved one step closer to a regional championship here Thursday night by downing Pocola.

It was the fourth time this season that the Lady Wolves and Bulldogs have each defeated Pocola.

Heavener’s girls won their 16^th-straight game with a 54-42 win over Pocola while Spiro downed the Indians, 54-45.

Spiro will face Keys, which upset fourth-ranked Tahlequah Sequoyah on Saturday  for the regional championship on Saturday at the Muskogee Civic Center while Heavener takes on Tahlequah Sequoyah.

	Photos by CRAIG HALL Spiro's Elliott Hawkins gets the shot off despite the efforts of Pocola's Ryan Lairamore.
Pocola's Taylor Martindale goes high to try and block a shot by Heavener's Kim Benson.

The Lady Wolves improved to 22-2 with the win. Heavener jumped ahead 12-3 early and led 30-12 at halftime. The lead eventually stretched to 22 points early in the third quarter before Pocola rallied.

After a 6-0 run midway through the third quarter, the lead was down to 14. Heavener answered with a run to up the lead back to 17 and the closest Pocola came was 48-37 with 5:29 left.

Heavener’s Kim Benson answered with a pair of baskets sandwiched around a three-point basket by Taylor Martindale and the Lady Wolves rested some of their starters over the final few minutes in preparation for the regional championship game.

Taylor Collins scored 37 points the last time Heavener beat Pocola. She scored 23 in Thursday’s game even though she got plenty of rest in the second half.

Skylar Cooper added 11 for the Lady Wolves. Martindale was Pocola’s leading scorer with 15 points while Amber Conrad had 11, including three three-point baskets.

Prior to the second game, Pocola coach Eric Ladd said his team couldn’t have any bad quarters if the Indians were going to beat Spiro.

The Indians had two bad quarters and it sent Pocola into the losers’ bracket.

Spiro jumped out to a quick 10-0 lead before Pocola could get anything going. The Indians cut the lead to 19-16 in the second quarter before Spiro led 24-19 at halftime.

The third quarter was the killer for Pocola. Spiro went on a 6-2 run in the first few minutes of the quarter and eventually outscored the Indians, 19-7, in the quarter.

Spiro finished the quarter on a 10-1 run to lead 43-26 at the end of the period.

Pocola was not through, however. The Indians went on a 9-1 run to cut the lead to nine points and trailed by only seven after Austin Parker hit a jump shot, was fouled and made the free throw with 3:52 left.

Spiro answered with its own run and increased the lead to 11 points and coasted to the win.

Elliott Hawkins led the Bulldogs with 17 points while Alonzo Releford had 10. Patrick Dixon had 18 to lead Pocola while Parker had 15.