A year removed from their stunning upset of the top-seeded Grantsville Cowboys in the state semifinals, the Emery Spartans again stared down the barrel of what seemed to be an unstoppable Grantsville Squad. As the old adage states, history repeated itself as the Spartans stunned the Cowboys and punched their ticket to their second consecutive state championship appearance with a 50-47 victory.
Opening the contest, Emery faced a potent press from Grantsville, leading to several turnovers for the Spartans. Proving their resilience, the Spartans adjusted and turned the pressure to their advantage, breaking the press and finding the duo of Katelyn Nelson and Aleeyah Cowley for easy transition baskets. A few well-timed threes helped the Spartans build a 17-9 advantage at the end of one.
“That was the biggest key for us; it was good we got off to a good start; that helped out a ton,” said Head Coach Jon Faimalo of the quarter.
The Cowboys would flip the script in the second, forcing turnovers from the Spartans and earning trips to the charity stripe. Grantsville senior Avery Allred would find a home at the line, scoring six of her 13 first-half points with free throws. A late 5-0 run to end the period put the Cowboys down one as the halftime buzzer sounded, and the score was in Emery’s favor, 26-25.
The third period would be a deadlock between the squads, with neither gaining an edge on the other. A three from Emery was answered in kind by Grantsville, creating a tense atmosphere as the fate of each team’s state title hopes hung in the balance. The Spartans held a slim 36-35 lead in the final frame of action.
A duel of fates in the fourth would be the story of the game, with the quarter featuring four ties and three lead changes over eight minutes.
Emery opened on a 6-2 run over the first three minutes of the frame, building a 42-37 advantage. Kodee Williams from the Cowboys would shake loose a defender and drain a three to cut into the lead. Another quick transition basket for Grantsville knotted the contest up at 42 apiece.
Emery would quickly regain their edge off a beautiful feed from Kali Jensen to Megan Stilson, leading to an easy layin. Allred would respond quickly on the other end, weaving and winding to the hoop before getting an and-one to drop to give the Cowboys a narrow one-point advantage.
Jensen earned her way to the line, where she split a pair of shots to tie the game yet again at 45.
Grantsville would have a chance to take the lead on a fast break from Sadee Castagno when, as if by divine intervention, the shot skipped harmlessly off the backboard to keep the game tied.
The teams traded baskets to keep the score even at 47 with 1:30 remaining. Both defenses clamped down until an ill-advised foul from the Cowboys sent Jensen to the line with 14 seconds remaining. Jensen would have a 50% split on the trip to force a narrow one-point Emery lead with the clock in the single digits.
The Cowboys would put the ball in the hands of Allred, who had 22 points at the time.
Allred would drive …
Get the ball to the painted area …
And dribble the ball off her foot! Giving Emery the ball with three seconds left and the lead.
One inbound and a quick foul later, Kabree Gordon stepped to the free-throw line with a chance to ice the game. She would do just that as she drained both shots to lift Emery to a 50-47 victory as chants of “Just like last year” rained from the Spartan student section.
“It was a heavyweight match,” said Fiamalo after the game. We fired, and they responded. It was back and forth. We had some big free throws down the stretch, and we were able to pull off the incredible win.”
Looking to the scoring column, leading the way was Nelson who closed with 14 points, Jensen was right behind with 11. Cowley and Gordon had eight apiece with Saige Curtis pouring in six.
The win advances Emery to their second consecutive state championship game, where they will face the Canyon View Falcons. Emery split the regular season series against Canyon View, with each squad winning on its home court to set up the state title rubber match.
Live play-by-play coverage of the title game will start at 4:30 p.m. on KOAL 107.3 FM and 750 AM with the Landon’s Diesel Service pregame show and tipoff at 5 p.m. The game will also be available to stream on YouTube on Castle Country Sports- Emery.