Story and photos by Rusty Ellis
The York Institute Dragonettes took down Monterey in district play 65-43 on Monday in Jamestown.
The Lady Wildcats hung around for the majority of the game, battling on defense to hold the Dragonettes to just a 14-11 lead at then end of the first quarter. The Dragonette offense began to hit its stride in the second frame, outscoring MHS 16-5 to take a 30-17 lead into the break, punctuated by a buzzer-beating three from Laci Patton.
The third quarter saw the Dragonettes begin to pull away, as they started getting out into transition and getting easier buckets than they got in the first half. It added up to a 51-33 lead heading into the fourth after York outscored Monterey 21-16 in the frame.
There, the Dragonettes had their second-best defensive period of the night by holding the Lady Wildcats to just 10 points. When the buzzer sounded, it was York who moved to 4-0 in district play with a 65-43 win over MHS.
Gabby Beaty led the way with 13 points, while Reese Beaty added 12. Sage Smith and Ellie Leffew rounded out the quartet of Dragonettes in double-figures with 11 points.
While he was pleased with the win, York head coach Michael Green says his team didn’t seem like they were ready to play early on.
“I thought our effort was terrible, we came out sluggish in the first half,” Green said. “We had a look like we weren’t ready. Monterey came to win, and they battled us hard there.”
The third quarter proved to be one of the biggest differences in the game, something Green attributed to his team playing with more of a sense of urgency on defense.
“We were trying to get a little energy going,” Green said. “It’s hard to get in a flow when there’s a foul every trip…Monterey came ready to play, and we didn’t match their effort at all, but defensively we adjusted in the second half. We tried to make some things happen, but hopefully we’ll have a little better effort next time.”
The Dragons got off to a hot start on offense and closed the game down in the fourth quarter of their 75-68 victory over the Wildcats.
York got a spark in the form of Blaine York early on, as he scored 13 first-quarter points to lead the Dragons to a 29-12 lead at the end of one. Monterey locked down on defense in the second quarter, holding York to just nine points in the quarter. This allowed the Wildcats to trim the deficit down to 38-28 at the halftime break.
The Wildcats came out hot from three in the third and cut the lead down to 41-34, but it was as close as they would get as York closed the quarter on a 17-9 run to take a 58-43 advatange into the fourth.
The two teams traded buckets back-and-forth in the final stanza, leading to a 75-58 win for the Dragons.
Silas Randolph led all scorers with 32 points for MHS, while Brandon Dillon scored 15 points.
York paced the Dragons with 20 points, while Jon Heddings followed close behind with 19 points. Nic Smith added 14 for head coach Rodney Pile, who said the hot start set the tone for his team.
“The first quarter, we came out and shot it well,” Pile said. “We were able to open up a lead, and even though we didn’t maintain the lead, it was nice to have it…we scored 75 points, so I thought offensively, we did pretty good. We’ve just got to get a little bit better defensively.”
York is just the latest Dragon to step up as a reliable scoring option, as his ability to shoot the ball forced Monterey to defend everyone one-on-one. For York to go as far as they want, Pile knows he’ll need players like York, Myles Leffew and Jackson Conatser to continue to step up.
“It’s very crucial that we get (this depth),” Pile said. “That’s what it’s going to take. It’s hard to be consistent every night, but hopefully we have enough guys (step up)…I’m having a little bit more trouble with the rotation and getting different guys minutes, but it’s a good problem to have.”
York will be back in action on Tuesday against Clay County, while Monterey will travel to Bledsoe County.
