Mountainburg made a run in the third quarter and then made its free throws down the stretch as the Lady Dragons knocked off the Woodlawn Lady Bears, 6151, in the first round of the Class 2A State Basketball Tournament last Wednesday afternoon, Feb. 27, at Mansfield High School.Both teams were sizzling from the outside early on, with Woodlawn, the no. 3 seed from the South Region, knocking down five 3-pointers in the first half and Mountainburg, the no. 2 seed from the West Region, draining six.Kathryn Dixon had two of her five 3's in the first quarter as another trey from Jaci Hoyt to give the Lady Bears a 13-9 lead after the first quarter.The Lady Dragons' Elliott Owen caught fire in the second quarter, however, as she hit two more from long range to finish with 11 points in the frame and Mountainburg moved in front, 31-29, at the half.Woodlawn's offense cooled considerably in the third quarter, managing just five points off one field goal and three free throws. The Lady Bears hit just 3-of-9 from the charity stripe in the third quarter and were 6-of-16 from the free throw line in the second half.Mountainburg, meanwhile, was converting its freebies in the third quarter, connecting on 7-of-8 attempts and adding yet another 3 from Eden Dean to extend the Lady Dragons' lead to 47-34 by the start of the fourth quarter.Dixon a couple of 3-pointers in the final period as Woodlawn regained it offense but it wasn't enough to overcome the 13-point deficit as the Lady Bears ended up falling by 10. Mountainburg kept Woodlawn at bay by making 11-of-14 free throws in the fourth.Dixon had 15 points to lead the Lady Bears in scoring. Anna Fitzgibbon, playing in what was her final game, followed with 14 points while Jaci Hoyt had 12.Woodlawn overcame a losing overall record during the regular season to finish 18-16 for the year. The Lady Bears had a late season turnaround, advancing from the no. 6 seed at the 8-2A District...
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