For the third straight year the Emery Lady Spartans will play for the state championship.
Senior Kacelyn Toomer stuffed the stat sheet with 13 points, six rebounds, six steals and two blocks to lead Emery past the Juab Wasps 59-30 Friday night in the semi-finals of the 3A State Championship Tournament at the Sevier Valley Center in Richfield.
Emery wasted no time in developing a comfortable lead outscoring Juab in each of the first three quarters. Holding a 30-15 lead at the break, the Lady Spartans used a 21-4 run in the third to put the game out of reach.
“It was a good night and the game went exactly as we wanted it to,” said head coach Lynn Tuttle. “We got the flow of the game, got the girls up and down and got the ball game won so they could get a little rest.”
With a comfortable lead midway through the third quarter Tuttle was able to dig deep into his bench. A total of 13 girls checked into the game, while eight scored at least two points.
Ambree Bennett helped lead a solid offensive performance by scoring 12 points off of the bench on only eight shots. Kinlee Toomer and Megan Jensen both contributed ten points, while three others finished with four.
Emery used a steady dose of defense to help jump start the offense. Seven different Emery players recorded at least one steal as the team forced 17 Juab turnovers.
“I do my best to steal the ball and look up because we always have girls running,” said Kacelyn Toomer. “It’s going to be exciting to play in the state championship. We know what the environment will be and we’ll make sure we’re ready.”
Juab’s Tatum Hyatt scored a team best seven points, converting three-of-seven shots from the field. Both Willow Kay and Emilia Anderson scored six, while Bayli Heap ended with four.
Friday’s win moves Emery to 24-0 on the season, leaving one game standing between them and a perfect season. The Lady Spartans will now prepare for the Grantsville Cowboys in Saturday’s State Championship.
“They are big and physical and they will match-up well with us,” said Tuttle when asked about Grantsville. “They run a 1-3-1 half court trap and our guards are going to have to get through that.”
Saturday’s title game will be a rematch of last year’s semi-finals. Emery won that meeting 56-36 before eventually claiming the 3A Championship the following night.
Live coverage of Saturday’s championship game will air on KOAL 107.3 FM and 750 AM beginning at 4:30 p.m.. Tip-off will follow shortly after at 5:00. Saturday’s live audio feed will also be available at castlecountryradio.com.