Oklahoma girls basketball state tournament roundup: Tulsa Union to face Bixby in 6A semifinals; 5A contenders Sapulpa, El Reno square off in semifinal

By Buck Ringgold I Photo by Carlos Flores

Just more than a week since being defeated by Bixby in overtime, Tulsa Union will get another crack at the Spartans.

This time, at stake will be a berth in the Class 6A championship game.

The Lady Redhawks set up the rematch with Bixby by pulling away in the second half of Thursday's 6A quarterfinal against Mustang. Up 20-19 at the break, Union posted a 7-3 third-quarter edge and also outscored the Lady Broncos by four in the final quarter for a 43-34 win at Midwest City Carl Albert.

Union will face Bixby for the fourth time this season, with the latest contest taking place at 9 a.m. Friday in the 6A semifinals at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman on the University of Oklahoma campus.

In the regular season, both the Lady Redhawks and Lady Spartans won the other's home court. On March 3, Bixby clinched a trip to state by outlasting Union in overtime, 49-47, in the 6A area round at Cleveland.

Senior guard TK Pitts led Union (19-6) in Thursday's quarterfinal win with 15 points, nine of those in the opening half. Aubrey Hishaw added 11 points, and the Lady Redhawks also got a boost from Desiree Marshall-Penny, who hit two 3-pointers to eventually finish with nine points.

Mustang (22-5) got 14 points from senior Karley Johnson, who is headed to play at Arkansas next season.

Sand Springs 48, Choctaw 38

Behind a 17-point performance from standout senior guard Journey Armstead, the Lady Sandites move on into the 6A semifinals.

Sand Springs (23-3) will take on 6A No. 1 Edmond North at noon in Norman on Friday.

Thursday, the Lady Sandites trailed 8-7 after one quarter before turning it on in the next period. They outscored Choctaw, 17-9, to take a 24-17 lead at intermission and also was up, 34-28, after three quarters.

Armstead scored 10 of her game-high 17 points in the second half. Sand Springs also got 14 points from senior post Layne Kirkendoll, while junior Hailey Jackson hit three second-half field goals.

Choctaw (22-3) got 12 points from senior Kylee Hunt, with junior center Jazmin Adams chipping in eight.

5A Quarterfinals

Sapulpa 54, Lawton MacArthur 50

A phenomenal performance from junior guard Stailee Heard allowed the Lady Chieftains to live to play another day.

Heard scored 16 of her game-high 24 points after halftime. She also had nine fourth-quarter points as Sapulpa was able to edge the Lady Highlanders in Thursday's 5A quarterfinal at Norman North High School.

Sapulpa (20-6) will move on to Friday's semifinals at the Lloyd Noble Center, and a 4:30 p.m. matchup with El Reno in a game featuring two of the top teams in 5A.

The Lady Chieftains led by two at halftime in Thursday's win, 23-21, before outscoring MacArthur in the third quarter, 18-13, for a 41-34 advantage.

Helping Heard with her big day was Tyla Heard and Jaselyn Rossman, each of whom scored seven points.

Lawton MacArthur (19-8) got three players in double figures. Senior Azariah Jackson scored 21 points, Tajanah Mardenborough added 12 and Alayna Vines had 10.

El Reno 50, Grove 26

El Reno built a 25-12 halftime lead, holding the Lady Ridgerunners to just three second-quarter points. The Lady Indians also gave up three points in the third quarter to forge a 41-15 advantage in Thursday's 5A semifinal.

Ashlyn Evans-Thompson scored 15 points, all coming in the middle two quarters, to lead El Reno (23-4). Pauline Black-Harmon finished with 11 points, all in the second half, and Janae Black-Harmon scored nine.

Leading Grove (21-6) in scoring was Anna Bacon with eight points. She also made two treys.

2A Quarterfinals

Pocola 41, Merritt 35

The No. 2 Lady Indians were on the ropes for much of Thursday's 2A quarterfinal at Oklahoma City's State Fair Arena. But they were able to utilize a big fourth quarter in escaping with the win. 

Pocola (26-1) trailed 10-6 after one quarter and 19-15 at halftime. The Lady Indians also were behind entering the fourth, 28-27, before turning things around the rest of the way, outscoring Merritt 14-7.

Freshman forward Allyssa Parker led the Lady Indians with 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Senior Mika Scott added nine points and went 4-of-6 from the free-throw line for Pocola, which will play Dale at noon Friday in the 2A semifinals.

Jamie Peffer, a senior, scored nine points to lead the Oilerettes (21-6), who committed 27 turnovers. The Lady Indians got 23 of their points off those turnovers.

Dale 67, Silo 55

Brook Rutland's big game helped lead the Lady Pirates into Friday's semifinals.

Rutland, a junior, finished the day with 24 points. She went 10-of-19 from the field, made three 3-point baskets, had six rebounds and also distributed two assists.

The Lady Pirates (24-5) also got 18 points from Makenzie Gill and 10 from Makenzy Herman. Gill hit two 3's and grabbed six boards, and Herman had seven assists and was 6-of-7 from the foul line.

Dale led, 22-12, after one quarter and 35-25 at halftime. The Lady Pirates extended that lead to 51-38 through three quarters.

Silo (22-9) was led by 6-foot-1 junior forward Tiani Ellison, who scored 19 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. Senior forward Alaria Bell also had a double-double with 14 points and 10 boards, while senior guard Presley McKnight finished with 12 points.

Hooker 44, Latta 39

The Lady Bulldogs had an uphill climb to eventually pull out Thursday's 2A quarterfinal win.

Hooker (26-1) trailed 13-3 at the end of the first quarter before gradually coming back. The Lady Bulldogs were down four at the break, 22-18, before taking over in the third quarter, holding Latta to five points in going in front, 31-27.

Three Lady Bulldogs reached double figures, led by 13 points each from Izabella Neville and Mady Swayze. Neville also made three 3's. Senior Hollie Stalder was also in double figures with 12 points while getting a double-double with 10 rebounds.

For Latta (23-6), junior guard Brooklyn Ryan led all scorers with 17 points, and she had two 3's as well.

With the win, Hooker will now take on defending 2A champion Howe in Friday's 2A semifinals, set for 1:30 p.m. inside State Fair Arena.

Howe 65, Fairland 36

The defending champion Lady Lions, ranked No. 1 in 2A, took command in the second quarter.

Leading 20-13 after one, Howe held Fairland to four second-quarter points in forging a 34-17 halftime advantage. Howe (23-5) also led after three quarters, 48-26.

Senior Raelyn Delt led all scorers with 17 points, while fellow senior Shiloh Fletcher added 10. Gracie Lute and Maddie Ramsey each added eight points, with Ramsey also hitting two 3's and recording three assists.

The Lady Lions were 65 percent from 2-point range, making 20-of-31 attempts.

Fairland (25-3) got 13 points from Erica Schertz, a senior center.