Emery High School senior Aliya Lester dazzled the hometown crowd as the Lady Spartans earned a dominant 72-54 win over the Manti Templars in the second round of the 3A State Championship Tournament Friday night at the Spartan Center in Castle Dale.
Entering the State Tournament as the No. 5 seed, the Lady Spartans protected home court as Lester scored 22 of her game-high 25 points in the opening half. Unloading from beyond the arc, Lester knocked down six three-point jumpers for the second straight game to lead a potent offensive attack.
Trailing for the majority of the first quarter, the Lady Spartans ended the period on a 9-0 run, taking a 22-17 lead into the second quarter. The momentum carried over into the second as Emery used a 22-12 run to take a double-digit advantage into the second half.
Though the Lady Spartans never gave up the lead over the final two quarters, Manti proved to be a formidable opponent. An offensive burst allowed the Templars to chop the Emery lead to just eight points. The Lady Spartans answered each Manti run with timely baskets to put the game out of reach.
Kenadie Maughan helped push the Emery offense as she poured in 12 points off the bench to lead the second unit. Katelyn Nielson scored 10 of her 11 points in the second half to put the game out of reach. Karleigh Stilson also reached double-figures as she finished with 10 points, including two makes from beyond the perimeter.
Meeting for the third time this season, the Lady Spartans earned a three-game sweep, winning the last two outings by 18 points and the first by 28.
Carlie Thompson posted a team-high 15 points to lead the way for Manti in the season-ending loss. June Olsen chipped in with 12 points and Cadee Alder added nine.
Friday’s win extends Emery’s winning streak to five games, dating back to Jan. 30, which also happened to be a win over Manti. The victory pushes Emery to the final stage of the season, a three-day tournament in Richfield beginning on Thursday.
The 3A State Tournament started on Tuesday with 19 teams. The field has now been trimmed to just eight, with no upsets taking place in the first two rounds.
The Lady Spartans will now prepare for a highly anticipated showdown with No. 4 Judge Memorial on Thursday at 9:10 pm. The winner will advance to the semifinals on Friday against either No. 1 Grantsville or No. 8 Summit Academy.