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Comets emerge from Forest
NEVADA, Mo. -- The Cottey Comets won their first-ever region tournament game by beating St. Louis Community College-Forest Park Saturday, 78-62, at the Hinkhouse Center.
The Comets (11-10) used a 19-6 run to start the second half to propel them into the NJCAA Region 16 semifinals Friday at Penn Valley Community College in Kansas City.
"I really thought it'd be a matter of which team showed up," Cottey head coach Dave Ketterman said. "They did show up, but we showed up too."
Cottey showed up in a big way after halftime.
Leading 33-28 at the break, the Comets watched Forest Park's Brandi Williams hit one of two free throws less than 30 seconds into the second half, then made their decisive run.
Kerri Shanks started the run with her first 3-pointer of the game, and when it was over Cottey had a 52-35 advantage.
Shanks had six points during the run, both on treys, and Kayla Orear had seven during the seven-minute stretch that put the Comets firmly in command.
Cottey and Forest Park went toe-to-toe in the first half, with the Comets leading most of the way but never by more than five points.
Cottey worked Forest Park inside early, not backing down from the stout Lady Highlander front line. Lacy Leonard and Ashleigh Houdyshell combined for 17 points in the first half, while also effectively putting the Lady Highlanders in foul trouble.
On the defensive end Cottey employed a triangle-and-two with the intent to slow down Forest Park's Imogene Dooley and Kiara Smith.
The defense worked, limiting the potent scoring duo to a combined 22 points.
More than anything, the combo defense managed to keep the Lady Highlanders out of sync, something Ketterman stressed.
"We were just never going to let them get into a rhythm," he said. "I thought we did an excellent job (defensively)."
Cottey also used a 3/4-court press at times, changing things up enough to keep Forest Park from making a run.
Adding to Forest Park's frustration was an unusual lineup Ketterman used at times when he wanted to give Leonard a break. Ketterman went small, with forwards Houdyshell and Sandra Powers teaming with guards Maggie Wigness, Orear and Shanks for stretches at a time. The lineup gave Forest Park an edge inside, but Cottey was able to actually extend their leads with the quintet on the court.
"It was a real funky lineup," Ketterman said. "The matchup problems were for them too."
Leonard led the team with 22 points and 15 rebounds, despite only playing about 28 minutes.
Shanks scored 18, 14 in the second half, and Orear added 15. Shanks also had a team-high seven assists, with only one turnover.
Houdyshell had one of her best offensive performances of the season, netting 10 to give the Comets four players in double figures.
Tierra Baldwin led Forest Park with 18 points.
Cottey will play the region's top seed, North Central Missouri College (23-7) in the semifinals Friday. The game is scheduled to start at 5 p.m.
One more win for the Comets will set a school record for wins in a season. They have already assured themselves of finishing with a record of at least .500, the first time they've ever accomplished that.