MORGANTOWN — If the Morgantown High girls’ basketball team is going to make a run in the state tournament, it will likely be on the strength of its defense.
The Mohigans’ defense was on full display Wednesday night, as they held visiting Preston to no points in the second quarter, on their way to a 76-15 victory over the Knights inside the Rowdie Center.
The North Regional victory propelled the Mohigans (15-6) to next week’s state tournament in Charleston. MHS was awarded the No. 3 seed and will play sixth-seeded Cabell Midland at 9:30 a.m. on March 12 inside the Charleston Coliseum.
The Mohigans put on their defensive pressure from the opening tip, pressuring every pass, dribble, and cut the Knights (10-13) attempted. It led to 10 first-quarter turnovers and numerous transition baskets for the Mohigans, and when combined with a trio of deep rainbow triples from Carper Messerly, Morgantown quickly sprinted out to a 24-6 lead. That lead grew to 46-6 at halftime, after MHS threw up a shutout in the second quarter.
“They were stronger, longer, more athletic, and their pressure induced panic mode for us almost immediately,” explained Preston coach Brian Miller. “And it snowballed from there. Morgantown is really really good, and physically we didn’t have any answers tonight.”
MHS backed off their full-court pressure in the second half, but continued to play high intensity basketball well after the final outcome was decided, including every reserve off the end of the bench. Messerly hit for a game-high 14, all in the first half, followed by Maddie Ancell’s 12, and Leyton Balderson’s 10, while center Maliyah Young was ferocious in the paint with multiple blocked shots and a boatload of rebounds to go along with eight points.
“We definitely did not want to be in a tight game in the fourth quarter if we could help it,” MHS coach John Fowkes said. “Which is why we kept the pedal down as long as we did. I thought we had the best pre-game practice I’ve ever seen, so I knew we’d be ready. I loved the fact that our focus and intensity never fell off, not once. That certainly is what you’re looking for in the postseason.”
After the game, Miller was easily able to sum up his team’s surprising season.
“After our summer season, most of my coaching friends told me they weren’t sure that we’d win a game all year, and I think I might’ve agreed with them,” he said. “Our tallest player was 5-foot-7, and we had a 5-4 power forward. But we played hard every single time on the court, we played the right way and did the right thing in games all year long. We played together and for each other as a team and had fun and it was an absolute blast.
“And look at what we did. We won our first home regional game, and half the teams in the state were done, while we had another game to play. I couldn’t be prouder of what we accomplished this season.”
For his Mohigans to make a fifth straight trip to the state finals, Fowkes believes the recipe was already on full display.
“We need to continue to play hard and share the rock,” he said. “We’ve been through so much adversity on and off the court with injuries and hardships, but these girls show up to practice every day with smiles on their faces, ready to work hard to get better. They want me to coach them hard – and believe me, I do – but we never leave upset. We play together so well, especially on defense. I think we’re elite defensively because we are athletic, long, physical, intense, and very disciplined.
“I like where we are,” he concluded, “and we’re ready to get after it in Charleston.”
Box score
Preston 6 0 6 3 – 15
Morgantown 24 22 19 9 – 76
PRESTON (10-13)
Myla Wotring 1 0-0 3, Teorie Felton 1 1-2 3, Jillian Conn 0 1-2 1, Sophie Zinn 0 1-2 1, Reagan Jennings 1 0-0 2, Vera Strawser 1 1-2 3, Macy Thomas 0 0-2 0, Mya Townsend 1 0-0 2. Totals 5 4-10 15.
MORGANTOWN (15-6)
Sydney Deusenberry 3 0-0 8 Ava Clinton 3 0-0 6, Carper Messerly 5 1-2 14, Maliyah Young 4 0-0 8, Alyssa Tingler 3 0-2 6, Maddie Ancell 5 2-3 12, Leyton Balderson 4 1-1 10, Dana Ghattas 2 1-2 5, Ava Morton 1 0-0 2, Bella Cost 3 0-0 5. Totals 32 5-10 76.
3-pointers: PHS 1 (Wotring), MHS 7 (Messerly 3, Deusenberry 2, Balderson, Cost).
