PROCTORVILLE – The gym was packed and loud.

Tuesday, February 08, 2000

PROCTORVILLE – The gym was packed and loud. The score was tied with a minute left to play. Each possession meant something.

It was everything the Ohio Valley Conference championship game should be.

Fairland scored the last six points of the game to come from behind and beat the Rock Hill Redwomen 60-58 Monday in the game that decided the OVC basketball race.

"I told the girls that I didn’t think we would be here. So, as long as we are in the position to do so, let’s win it," Fairland coach Jack Harris said.

Fairland finished the OVC at 8-0 and it is 16-3 overall. Rock Hill ended league play 6-2 and is 14-4 on the season.

The Lady Dragons had four players in double figures including Jeana Diamond with 19. Brooke Fisher had 14 points, and Jessica Higgins and Michelle Payne each had 11. Rock Hill was led by Mandy McDonie with 14 points, Miranda Edwards had 13 and Michelle Matkins had 10.

"We really didn’t come out and play our game in the first half," said Rock Hill coach Tracey Mullens. "We did a better job in the second half and had some chances, it just didn’t go our way at the end."

Going through five ties in the early going, Fairland started to pull away at the end of the first quarter. Diamond and Higgins each had four points to give the Dragons a 21-12 lead.

The Redwomen raced back and cut the score to 23-21 on a 3-point play from Jordan Edwards with 6:12 left in the half.

Diamond, Fisher and Payne each hit layups that quickly put the Dragons back on top 29-21. Payne made a layup off a nice pass from Higgins and Higgins converted a 3-point play giving the Dragons a 37-27 lead at the half.

Rock Hill quickly closed the lead as Matkins and McDonie hit a pair of jumpers each cutting the lead to 38-35.

Fairland didn’t get a field goal until five minutes into the half and the Redwomen eased ahead 42-40 on a 3-point play from Miranda Edwards.

Miranda Edwards stayed hot hitting a pair of jumpers midway through the fourth and Bobbie Clark’s tip-in gave the Redwomen a 57-54 lead with 2:39 left. A Clark free throw put the Redwomen lead at 58-54.

Fisher and Payne each hit a pair of free throws to tie the game at 58-58 with a minute left.

Both teams had chances, but it was a tip-in from Payne, on a miss by Ashley Harris, that gave the Dragons the lead with 8 seconds left.

Rock Hill dribbled to midcourt and called a timeout. With 1.1 seconds left on the clock, Clark took the inbounds pass but was stuffed as she attempted the short, potential game-tying basket.

"We thought, at the beginning of the season, that it would be between Chesapeake and Rock Hill and we would help decide it," Harris said. "We lost our opener at Chesapeake and I didn’t think we had a chance. It is a credit to our girls and their effort."

ROCK HILL 12 15 19 12 – 58: Miranda Edwards 6 0 1-1 13, Jordan Edwards 3 0 3-3 9, Amanda Mays 2 0 0-0 4, Mandy McDonie 7 0 0-0 14, Michelle Matkins 3 0 4-6 10, Bobbie Clark 2 0 3-7 7, Cindy Boggs 0 0 1-2 1. Totals: 23-54 (0) 12-19 58. Rebounds: 35 (Mandy McDonie 11). Turnovers: 18. Team fouls: 20. Fouled out: Jordan Edwards.

FAIRLAND 21 16 10 13 – 60: Brooke Godby 0 0 0-0 0, Holley Harris 0 1 0-0 3, Michelle Payne 4 0 2-2 11, Jessica Higgins 5 0 1-1 11, Ashley Harris 1 0 1-4 3, Brooke Fisher 4 0 6-6 14, Jeana Diamond 7 1 2-5 19. Totals: 23-50 (2) 12-18 60. Rebounds: 25 (Ashley Harris 11).