Lam, Bailey Lead Rout
Posted: March 4, 2013
SHS coach Chris Dodson talks during a timeout against Patrick County at the Convo. (Photos by Jason Lenhart)
Spotswood’s Tayler Dodson scores inside against Patrick County on Saturday.
Well, except that she didn’t get a postgame acknowledgment from her boyfriend.
“He ran out, and I didn’t even get a high-five from him,” Lam said of senior Austin Nicely, who played in the SHS boys’ game right after the girls’. “Everybody high-fived me but him, and I was like, OK.”
She certainly deserved some congratulations.
Lam scored a career-high 24 points off the bench – her previous high was 10 – in the Blazers’ 83-42 win over Patrick County in a Division 3 girls’ basketball quarterfinal Saturday at James Madison University’s Convocation Center.
Spotswood (27-1) advances to the state semifinals for the fourth time in five years. This time, the Blazers will meet Monticello at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Siegel Center in Richmond. The Mustangs beat Poquoson 47-46 in a thrilling quarterfinal earlier in the day.
Spotswood’s win Saturday didn’t have the same suspense.
SHS senior guard Bailey Williams had a monster night, putting up a triple-double of 23 points, 12 assists and 10 steals as she winds down her high-school career before heading to North Carolina-Greensboro on a basketball scholarship.
“I think that speaks wonders about Bailey that she could throw a triple-double, and everybody’s like, ‘That’s Bailey,’” SHS coach Chris Dodson said. “I think that speaks volumes about what a special basketball player she is if you throw a triple-double and it seems normal.”
But the spotlight belonged to Lam.
Not only was she the leading scorer, but she also turned the tide toward Spotswood for good. The Blazers missed their first five shots and trailed 7-2 early in the first quarter against underdog Patrick County, the Region IV, D-3 runner-up.
But Lam first made a 3-pointer from the corner, then hit a layup. After Williams knocked in two free throws on a technical foul, Lam drained another 3-pointer from the same side.
That sparked a 20-2 run, giving Spotswood a 22-9 lead after a quarter.
“I hit two [3-pointers] when I first came in, and I knew I was on fire,” Lam said.
SHS junior forward Tayler Dodson added 14 points and sophomore guard Elizabeth Dofflemyer had 12 for the Blazers, who are well on their way to living up to their slogan, “Unfinished Business,” which has been plastered on their practice jerseys ever since they lost in last year’s regional semifinals. It’s a reference to winning a state championship this time around.
“We played a very good team tonight – probably the best team in the state in Division 3 – and we’re pretty aware of that,” PCHS coach Glenn Burnett said.
The Blazers played pretty good defense, too, forcing 36 PCHS turnovers. They also held sophomore post Ebony Reynolds, the Piedmont District co-Player of the Year, to just four points; all of them came on two consecutive buckets in the second quarter. After the second, Reynolds sprinted to the other end of the floor and threw up in a trash can behind the basket. (She returned in the second half.)
“We left her out there too much,” Burnett said.
Forward Hannah Helbert – her team’s only senior – scored 11 points to lead Patrick County.
But that didn’t threaten Spotswood, which hit 30 of 41 free throws compared to the Cougars’ five of 13. Lam hit three 3-pointers and knocked down seven of 10 freebies.
And afterward, she may just have reminded Nicely to offer a proper congratulations the next game.
“I’ll be in trouble for that one,” Nicely said, smiling.
PATRICK CO.
Shough 4 1-2 9, Hines 1 0-2 2, B. Dodson 2 0-0 5, Reynolds 2 0-0 4, Wilkinson 1 3-3 5, Helbert 5 1-5 11, Scales 2 0-0 4, Thomas 1 0-1 2. Totals 18 5-13 42.
SPOTSWOOD
Patterson 1 2-2 4, Jenkins 1 0-0 2, Williams 4 13-16 23, Lindsay 0 2-2 2, Dofflemyer 5 0-0 12, Lam 7 7-10 24, T. Dodson 5 4-10 14, Delaney 0 2-2 2. Totals 23 30-41 83.
Patrick Co. 9 14 9 10 – 42
Spotswood 22 18 22 21 – 83
3-Point Goals-Patrick Co. 1 (B. Dodson), Spotswood 7 (Williams 2, Dofflemyer 2, Lam 3). Fouled out-Patrick Co. (Dodson). Rebounds-Patrick Co. 32 (Shough 5), Spotswood 30 (Dofflemyer 6). Fouls-Patrick Co. 23, Spotswood 13.