The Emery Lady Spartans clinched the Region 12 Championship after defeating the South Sevier Rams 58-46 Tuesday evening at the Spartan Center in Castle Dale.
Emery never trailed as they raced out to an early 10-2 lead in the first quarter and never let up in the eventual win. Both teams entered Tuesday’s pivotal match-up with identical 7-1 records.
“My girls showed up ready to play tonight. Our emphasis coming into this game was to match their intensity,” said head coach Lynn Tuttle. “South Sevier threw a curve ball at us with a man-to-man defense. Seeing that was inviting and we took advantage of that down low.”
Holding a comfortable 33-22 lead at the end of the first half Emery created even more space after outscoring the Rams 17-6 in the third quarter. South Sevier chipped away at the massive Emery lead, but failed to get within single digits.
Sophomore Tatum Tanner delivered a dominating performance in the post, leading all scorers with 22 points. Locked in a fascinating match-up with South Sevier’s standout Presley Chapell, Tanner was the aggressor early forcing Chapell to the bench after drawing two early fouls.
While Tanner was dominate throughout Emery received a massive boost from Tambrie Tuttle, who scored 12 of her 14 points in the first half. Addie Lester chipped in with 13 points, most of which came inside the paint as she penetrated the pesky South Sevier defense.
While Emery fired on all cylinders throughout the game offensively, the Rams struggled to find consistency with Chapell on the bench early. Cassie Johnson was the lone South Sevier player to reach double-figures as she finished with 10. Chapell and Leah Torgerson both ended with eight.
Tuesday’s win gives the Lady Spartans revenge on their only league loss of the season. Playing South Sevier in Monroe back on Jan. 26, Emery battled back from a double-digit deficit to outscore the Rams 24-8 in the fourth quarter. The rally fell just short as Emery suffered a 46-43 defeat.
The Lady Spartans responded to the January loss by winning the next four games to secure the league title. Each of the four wins came by double-digits, the closest game being the 12-point victory on Tuesday night.
“I’m just so dang proud of the girls and the way they have continued to fight all year long.” Tuttle said when asked about winning the region crown. “We obtained our first big goal that we wanted, which was region champs, now we’ve got another in mind and hopefully we can make deep run towards that in Richfield.”
Emery will now shift its focus to the regular season finale on Thursday night, which takes them to Moab to meet the Grand Red Devils. The first meeting between the two teams ended in lopsided fashion as the Lady Spartans cruised to a 84-28 win back on Jan. 19.
It is unknown as the where the Emery sits in the RPI standings, but they are perceived to be the No. 1 team in the classification. The final RPI rankings will be released Saturday morning, setting the stage for the state tournament.