HICO — Allison Syner knew if ever her team needed her senior leadership, it was now.

Syner’s second-seeded Midland Trail Patriots had just watched No. 3 Richwood rally from a seven-point fourth-quarter deficit to force overtime, then score the first two points of the extra period to take the lead in one of the Class A Region 3, Section 1 girls basketball tournament openers Monday, eventually won by Midland Trail 46-38.

“It’s my senior year, and as captain I needed to step up and take control,” said an elated Syner, who led the Patriots with 22 points, eight rebounds, six steals and two blocked shots.

A crucial four-point flurry from Syner, which included an underhanded scoop lay-in that handed the Patriots a 40-38 lead with 2:56 to play, came after Richwood’s Breanna Mazzella scored off an assist from Jamie Bailey on the overtime tip. Syner’s four points — and a later Syner free throw — provided the impetus for a 10-0 Midland run to end the game and allow the Patriots to advance with the eight-point verdict.

“Allison took over when we needed her to,” said Midland Trail coach Cynthia Hedrick. “We’ve come to expect that.

“I’m glad she does.”

A two-pointer by Trail’s Hannah Legg following  a Richwood turnover boosted the Patriot lead to 42-38 with 44.8 seconds to go, and Legg, who along with some of her teammates had struggled at the line up to that point, iced the triumph with a key 3 of 4 effort from the charity stripe in the closing 12.6 seconds.

Hedrick says overtime has become an ally for the Patriots. “This was our third or fourth overtime game. I don’t know, the girls just seemed to get comfortable (after Richwood took the early lead). I was pleased with our defense.”

Richwood coach Steven Nutter, whose squad lost to Trail twice during the regular season, was proud his girls came back as they did.

“We picked up the pressure and got three or four steals and capitalized on their turnovers,” he said. “Our girls played hard.

“We scored the first two of overtime and I thought we  had it going, then Syner came down and matched it. We didn’t make our shots at the end and they did.”

The Lumberjacks were also hurt when three starters — Mazzella, Hannah Brown and Sheena Phillips — were whistled out of the game with five personal fouls.

“They lost some of their key players,” Hedrick said.

In arrears 35-28 after Trail’s Kennedy Cochran hit a free throw with 2:50 remaining in regulation, Richwood braced itself and made the game interesting. Bailey netted a two-point goal from the left wing to make it 35-30, then Gretchen Weber supplied two more off a feed from Mazzella to trim the deficit to 35-32 with 1:35 to go.

Weber then buried a tough pull-up baseline jumper to make it 35-34 with 56.1 seconds to go, and, after a Syner free throw, Mazzella launched an arching field goal from the right elbow to tie it at 36-all with  32.3 ticks left and force the extra period.

After an 8-8 first-quarter tie, Trail got a 6-0 spurt to begin the second period, claiming a 14-8 lead en route to an 18-15 halftime margin. Richwood went 5:30 without a score in the quarter until Bailey connected on a foul line jumper to make it 14-10.

Trail, sparked by six points from Syner and three from Stephanie Cooper in the third period, secured a 29-23 lead going into the fourth.

Cooper supported Syner’s scoring with 11 points, all coming in the first three periods. “Stephanie kept us in it in the first half,” said Hedrick. “We could’ve quit. I’m very pleased with the way some of our younger players played.”

Cochran supplied six points and eight rebounds for the Patriots.

Trail is playing without one of  its leading scorers, Dannielle Matheny, who suffered a season-ending knee injury recently. “It hurt losing Dannielle. It showed in our last two ball games.”

Weber led Richwood with 13 points, and Brown and Mazzella scored eight each.

“It’s hard to beat a team three times,” said Syner. “You have to bring your whole game.

“It’s a good feeling right now.”

Midland Trail (10-12) faced Class A No. 7 Pocahontas County Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Dunmore for the section crown. The Warriors advanced by  defeating Valley 73-43.

Elsewhere:



Wyoming East 57 Oak Hill 50



Wyoming East dominated the boards and ousted Oak Hill from the Class AA Region 3, Section 1 tournament on Tuesday.

Ally Hatfield (game-high 22 points) and Brianna Pertee both had 14 rebounds, while Chelsea Duncan (15 points) and Chiara Jewell each had 13.

Oak Hill got 18 points from Kristen White and 13 from Joi Fruit.

Oak Hill had advanced with a 51-32 defeat of Liberty.

Emily Aurednik led the Red Devils with 16 points. Talisa Smith added nine and Fruit eight.

Wyoming East (13-10) faces Westside at 7 p.m. Thursday for the title.



Oak Hill

Joi Fruit 5 3-6 13, Talisa Smith 3 1-2 7, Kristen White 5 4-5 18, Emily Aurednik 3 0-0 8, Paige Tygrett 1 0-0 2, Jordan McDonald 1 0-1 2. Totals: 18 8-14 50.

Wyoming East (13-10)

Megan Cook 0 3-4 3, Ally Hatfield 10 1-1 22, Chelsea Duncan 6 3-7 15, Brianne Pertee 4 0-2 9, Chiara Jewell 3 1-1 7, Emily Day 0 1-2 1. Totals: 23 9-17 57.

OH    7    15    15    13    —    50

WE  10    12    18    17    —    57

Three-point goals: OH: 6 (White 4, Aurednik 2); WE: 2 (Hatfield, Pertee); Fouled out: none.



Meadow Bridge 56 Montcalm 32



Allison Gilkerson scored 14 points and Sarah Fleshman 13 as Meadow Bridge advanced in the Class A Region 3, Section 2 tournament at Princeton.

Chandra Harrah added 12 for the Wildcats (16-5), who will take on Fayetteville for the championship at 7 p.m. Thursday.

The Pirates advanced by beating Greater Beckley in the other game.



Montcalm

Miranda Kendrick 6 2-4 16, Autumn Bouldin 3 0-0 6, Leslie Kelly 3 0-0 6, Hannah Johnson 0 1-2 1, Miranda Crane 0 1-2 1. Totals: 15 5-8 32.

Meadow Bridge (16-5)

Chandra Harrah 3 3-4 12, Allison Gilkerson 3 8-8 14, Sarah Fleshman 5 3-11 13, Caitlin White 1 0-0 2, Courtney Richmond 2 1-2 6, Courtney Mullins 3 1-2 7, Hayley Wingerd 0 2-4 2. Totals: 17 18-31 56.

M      8    8    5    11    —    32

MB    7    8    16    25    —    56

Three-point goals: M: 1 (Kendrick); MB: 4 (Harrah 3, Richmond); Fouled out: M: Crane.