Fillies fall, 76-66, bow out of national tournament

By JACK STALLARD - Longview News Journal

Friday, March 25, 2005

SALINA, Kan. – The Panola Fillies picked the most inopportune time to have one of their worst shooting games of the season.

Unranked Gadsden State Community College placed four players in double figures, took advantage of a 25 percent shooting night by the Fillies and outlasted Panola here Thursday, 76-66, in an elimination game at the NJCAA Women's National Basketball Tournament.

Panola, making its first trip to the national tournament since winning back-to-back championships in 1977 and 1978, ends its season with a 29-5 record. Gadsden State (25-6) moves on to face Moberly (Mo.) at noon today, with the winner advancing to the consolation title game Saturday at the Bicentennial Center.

The Fillies, who opened the tournament Tuesday with a 98-72 loss to Cincinnati State, struggled offensively again Thursday. Panola shot just 28 percent from the floor (11 of 39) in the first half, and it only got worse as the Region XIV Conference tournament champs hit on just 22 of 85 field goals for the game.

‘‘You're not going to beat anyone shooting 28 percent from the floor,'' Panola head coach Tracey Stellato said.

The game moved from a ‘‘let them play'' mentality in the first half to a more conservative contest in the final 20 minutes. The two teams were whistled for just seven combined fouls in the first half, but finished the contest with 32 fouls between them.

‘‘It was difficult to get into the flow of the game, because you never knew what a foul was,'' Stellato said. ‘‘It's tough to tell the kids what to do when you never know what they are going to call. Still, we passed up some open shots and nothing seemed to fall. We didn't shoot the ball well in either game here.''

Gadsden State didn't exactly light things up offensively, but the Lady Cardinals put together the key run of the game right after the Fillies had battled back from a 10-point deficit.

Panola led by six early in the game when Chanel Pompallier came off the bench to drop in a short jumper for an 18-14 advantage, and the Fillies took a 27-25 lead with 6:33 left in the half on a long 3-pointer by Ashley Jones.

The lid slammed shut on the Fillies for the rest of the half, however, and Gadsden State scored the final six points before the break to lead 31-27 at intermission.

Panola used a modest 7-0 run early in the second half to go in front by three – taking a 36-33 lead on a 3-pointer from Kendall Homesley – but Gadsden State answered with a 7-0 run of its own to take the lead for good.

The Lady Cardinals put the Fillies in a 10-point hole when Amanda Crane came off the bench to provide a huge spark for her team. Crane, who led Gadsden State with 16 points, buried a 3-pointer for a 45-38 lead, and after Brandi Johnson muscled inside for a layup for the Fillies, Crane converted an old-fashioned three-point play and added another short jumper to put the Lady Cardinals on top 50-40 with 10:29 showing on the clock.

The Fillies, with freshman Tasha Marisett scoring four in a row from the free throw line and Jones knocking down another 3-pointer, quickly got back into the game with a 7-0 run.

An offensive rebound and bucket from Jackie Thompson pulled Panola to within a bucket (51-49) with 7:04 remaining, but Gadsden State took control for good when the Lady Cardinals reeled off 10 unanswered points for a 61-49 lead.

Panola trailed by as much as 16 with 2:50 to play before making one final run at the Lady Cardinals with 3-pointers from Marisett, Homesley and Pompallier – getting to within nine (73-64) at the 1:19 mark before Gadsden State was able to put things away with a free throw and a breakaway layup late.

Homesley paced Panola with 18 points, knocking down six treys on the day. Thompson closed out her career at Panola with a double-double, scoring 13 points and collecting 15 rebounds. Marisett added 11 points and Jones 10 points and six assists.

Joining Crane in double figures for Gadsden State were Emily Houts with 15, Emily Mason with 14 an George with 10. Mason also grabbed 11 rebounds.

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