by Rusty Ellis
MURFREESBORO – The York Institute Dragonettes advanced to the Class 2A State Semifinals on Thursday, as Reese Beaty scored a game-high 33 points to lead YAI over McMinn Central 66-63 in overtime.
York shot 62% from the floor in the win, getting off to a 6-10 start in the first quarter. Beaty’s midrange jumper with 1:23 to go in the first knotted the score at 12-12, and both teams finished the opening frame tied from there.
The Chargerettes used an eight-rebound advantage on the boards in the first half to begin building a lead, as Karina Bystry’s pair of free throws with 1:08 to play gave McMinn Central their biggest lead of the game at 33-21.
By the time the first half ended, it was a 33-23 deficit staring the Dragonettes in the face, as head coach Michael Green says his emphasis at the half was all about effort.
“We needed to come back in here knowing we played these last two quarters with max effort and left it all on the line,” Green said. “The rebounding killed us, but at the same time, (McMinn Central’s) a really good team…We’ve been down here three years in a row, we come to camp down here and we’ve won on this floor. Don’t sell yourself short, don’t sell your teammates short with your effort on the court.”
York immediately trimmed the deficit to five in the third, courtesy of an Emma Pile three and a Emma Cooper bucket in the paint. Raylee Werner’s basket out of a McMinn timeout made it a 33-30 game, and York found themselves down just two points going into the fourth quarter at 42-40.
Down 50-45 with 6:25 left in regulation, Beaty led a 6-0 run to give York a 51-50 lead, and the Dragonettes took a 55-52 lead on anothe Beaty jumper with just under three minutes remaining in the fourth.
Bystry’s two free throws with 20 seconds remaining tied the game, and York failed to get a shot off before the buzzer, forcing overtime.
There, a Werner basket and two Cali Franklin free throws pushed the Dragonette advantage to 61-58, and another Werner basket with 1:41 to go in the extra period made it a 63-59 lead. Molly Masingale cut the lead down to one, and the Chargerettes had an opportunity to force another overtime, but a three went just wide and York held on for the 66-63 victory.
“We just had to overcome so much in that game from the start,” Green said. “Some very dumb mistakes, but when you’ve got that never-give-up mentality, you’ve always got a chance…that was just a battle defensively, a real team effort.”
Green says many teams would’ve been overwhelmed in that scenario, down 10 at the half to what many believed was the 2A State Tournament favorite.
Not this team however, as Green says this was the exact reason he loaded up the schedule at the beginning of the year like he did.
“The reason we played all those great teams at the beginning of the season was because we knew this was coming,” Green said. “I don’t think the moment was too big for anybody…we did some dumb things, but at the same time, we’ve got freshmen, sophomores and one junior out there. I think anybody would love to be in our position right now.”
York will now turn their focus to Friday, as they will battle the winner of Gibson County/Huntingdon at 4 P.M.
