Not one public school in Anne Arundel County can beat South River girls basketball, it seems.
The Seahawks wore a chip on their shoulder as they walked into Broadneck to play Annapolis for the girls basketball county championship. Seeing the Panthers ranked higher had ruffled some feathers.
By the end of Saturday’s game, they’d shaken it off.
South River gradually grew its lead over the course of the afternoon and saved its most dominant quarter for last, dropping 16 points to cement a 51-27 victory, bringing a plaque home to Edgewater for the second year in a row and placing it atop their perfect county record (14-0) like a cherry.
“We knew we could beat them by more, and we did,” senior Skylar Woodyard, who scored 12 points, said.
Something about Broadneck’s gym always dogs South River (17-6), Seahawks coach Mike Zivic said, even if the Bruins aren’t actually playing. It wasn’t their most “crisp” performance, he said. In the end, the sheer well of South River’s depth is what saved it.
Seahawks groaned at frequent foul calls and Annapolis suffered the same fate.But South River not only had the luxury of a deep bench, but spreading the foul count around a wider pool. Fouls stacked more precariously among a smaller Annapolis roster.
“I’m comfortable going with basically everyone on the team,” Zivic said. “We have so many. We’re lucky. We have 10, 11, 12, 13 we can put in there. In other teams, that’s not the case.”
South River met Annapolis with so much fury that the Panthers were forced to call timeout less than three minutes in. The 5-0 start stung, but the constant turnovers seared.
Out of the huddle, the Panthers reset.
Annapolis muscled into the post and ripped rebounds down, turning them into putback baskets. The Panthers appeared in the Seahawks’ rear view mirror, 12-9 at the first quarter buzzer.
Every time South River threatened to race away, something tripped it up.
Senior Adella Norton led South River back toward domination with a 9-0 run that Woodyard capped with a 3-pointer.
Once again, coach Arbrey Butler called his Panthers in. And once again, the floor tilted.
In the first quarter, it was turnovers, a product of Annapolis’ suddenly amped defense, that troubled South River. In the second, it was fouls. Whistles disrupted Seahawk runs, exiling starters to the sideline and sending Panthers to the line.
The Seahawks’ lock Annapolis star McKenzie Fuller slipped, too. Whereas South River kept the prolific 3-point shooter from hitting in the first eight minutes, she sunk two in the latter.
By halftime, the Seahawks had only built a 24-16 wall.
“We missed way too many layups. They’re very aggressive on defense,” Zivic said. “We just needed to take care of and swing the ball. We knew if we could get one extra pass, or a really good pass, we could get a layup on the back end. And we ended up getting them.”
South River showed no fear in driving inside to attack. The last time the Seahawks played played the Panthers, they relied on their 3-point shooting. But the 3s weren’t falling Saturday.
Seahawks scored layup after layup, extending their lead to 35-20 by the end of the third. Karlee Hawkins’ rebounding funneled opportunities back, over and over again.
“It’s not about who we play,” Woodyard said. “We’re competing with our mindset. If we’re in our heads, we’re not winning. And we’re beating any team in the county by 20 or 30.”
Foul trouble hit Annapolis hard by the fourth quarter. By the time Audrey Skinner snapped Annapolis’ four-minute scoring drought, officials pinned five fouls on the Panther starters, most heavily on Fuller, who suffered her fourth. Freshman Melody Cordua and senior Lindsay Lyman earned the same fate early in the final quarter. Fuller fouled out shortly after.
It was over long before the clock hit zero. When South River kicked into its final run, Annapolis had no leading scorer and little room for mistakes to fight back.
Just over the two minute mark, Zivic cycled out all of his starters. One of those replacements, Elli Oxendine, thanked him with a 3-pointer.
“Our depth helps us keep fresh legs, and it definitely helps us the second half, defensively,” Zivic said. “We didn’t solidify our traps well enough today, or play crisp offense. But our depth wore them down.”
ANNAPOLIS – 9 7 4 7 – 27
SOUTH RIVER – 12 12 11 16 – 51
AN: McKenzie Fuller 9, Lindsay Lyman 6, Catherine King 5, Audrey Skinner 5, Melody Cordua 2,
SR: Skylar Woodyard 12, Kiera West 10, Sami Clarke 6, Karlee Hawkins 4, Adella Norton 4, Ryleigh Adams 4, Raegan Ogle 4, Elli Oxendine 3
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