Hedley’s broken dream

The Hedley Lady Owls’ hopes for a State Championship were pirated away last Thursday morning when a crucial shot was blocked in the final seconds of the game.

The Priddy Lady Pirates won the game, 57-54, in Austin’s Frank Erwin Center and took home the Class A Division II title.

“We played hard and played good enough to win,” said Hedley Coach Kenneth Housden, “but when it boiled down, we didn’t get the win.”

Several observers think poor officiating was Hedley’s undoing in Austin.

Just one point behind with 30 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Hedley got the ball to senior Lauren Hill, who worked her way inside, took a jump shot at the five-second mark, and was apparently fouled by Priddy’s Alesha Stegemoller. No call was made.

“I could see her grab [Lauren’s] arm,” Housden said. “It’s unbelievable that you’ve got three referees out there, and they can’t see it.”

The critical moment was caught on film by the Amarillo Globe-News, which published a photo Friday showing Stegemoller clearly making contact with Hill and exerting force on her arm.

“You can see her fingers on [Lauren’s] wrist; and after that, the bodies collided,” the coach said.

But did that one mistake cost Hedley the game? Housden believes it did.

“If they had called it, we would have gotten two free throws, and Lauren’s a 90-percent free throw hitter,” he said. “It was extremely lopsided.”

Hedley, which had been ranked number one all season, started the game cold and got into foul trouble early. They also ran into stiff opposition in the form of the six-foot Stegemoller, who scored 10 of Priddy’s first quarter points. She went on to be the top scorer in the game with 25 points, although Hedley did limit her to only two field goals in the second half.

The Lady Owls came from behind in the second quarter, buoyed by two three-point shots put in by junior Haley Bennett, and took a 31-30 lead into the locker room.

Hedley had its best run in the third quarter as the Lady Owls burst out to an eight-point lead before junior Rebekah Howard picked up her fourth foul and was sent to the bench. Priddy rallied and closed the third quarter with a 44-42 lead.

The fourth quarter was a tough match as Hedley struggled to regain the lead. A fifth foul was called on Howard, which also hampered the Lady Owls’ efforts.

“She’s our leading rebounder and our second leading scorer,” Housden said of Howard.

With Hill having her last shot blocked, the Lady Pirates darted to their end of the court, drew a foul, and sealed their 57-54 victory from the charity stripe.

Priddy led the Lady Owls in rebounds and sank 91 percent of the their free throws compared to 64 percent for Hedley.

Although disappointed by the outcome in Austin, Housden is very pleased with the past season and his girls’ performance. He’s also looking forward to next year as the team is only losing two seniors.

“We had a super year,” he said. “We finished 35-2. And the people have been very supportive of us. You couldn’t ask for a better group of fans.”

Haley Bennett led the Lady Owls with 23 points and was named to the All-Tournament team. Hill and Howard each had 12 points, junior Kasi Woodard had 5, and sophomore Sarah Bolin had 2.

Five Hedley Lady Owls have been named to the District 4-1A, Division II, All-District team.

Seniors Sealey Stevens and Lauren Hill and juniors Rebekah Howard, Haley Bennett, and Kasi Woodard were all named to the team. Junior Treva Rowland and sophomore Sarah Bolin received honorable mentions.