MOC-Floyd Valley showed
there's more to its team than Alexis Conaway. A lot more.
With Conaway held in
check by a box-and-1 defense, her teammates came through in a big way and the
top-ranked Lady Dutch beat No. 6 Unity Christian 63-57 to win the Class 3A
state championship in an all-Orange City final.
Katie Landhuis hit five first-half 3-pointers
to help MOC-Floyd Valley get the lead and finished with 21 to lead the
Lady Dutch, who had to play some critical minutes late in the game while
Conaway was on the bench with four fouls.
Emily McDonald added 13
points for the new champs, while Bre Harmelink had 10 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Conaway, who scored a
tournament record 46 points against Mediapolis in the semifinals, became a role
player in this one. She took only six shots and wound up with nine points, five
rebounds and four assists. She was named captain of the all-tournament team.
Kassidy DeJong led Unity
Christian with 25 points on 10-for-15 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds.
Sophomore Anna Kiel shot 9-for-12 from the field for 18 points and pulled down
10 rebounds.
MOC-Floyd Valley, which
beat Unity 52-40 in mid-December, finished the first half with a 16-3 run to
open a 34-22 lead. The Lady Dutch stayed comfortably ahead until Conaway went
to the bench after getting her fourth foul with 1:50 left in the third quarter.
When she returned with
5:10 left in the game, Unity Christian had cut the lead to 53-48, with DeJong scoring seven points in a 9-3 run. An NBA range 3 by
DeJong drew the Knights to 59-57 with 1:04 remaining,
but Conaway sank two free throws 22 seconds later, and after Unity missed a
3-point attempt, Breanne Schuiteman sank two free
throws to finish it off.
With the game hanging in
balance, the Lady Dutch were steady at the line, making eight straight free
throws in the final 3:15.
MOC-Floyd Valley adds
its first basketball title to the two consecutive state championships it has
won in volleyball. The Lady Dutch finish 26-1, with the only loss to 4A
tournament qualifier Sioux City Bishop Heelan. Unity
finishes 22-5.