By Greg Carey
CHARLESTON — Class AAA No. 3 University had no difficulty adjusting to the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center, racing out to a 22-7 first-quarter lead to set the tone in a 62-38 victory against No. 6 Martinsburg.
“They came with the intensity and the intention of winning this game,” Hawks coach David Price said. “They executed what we had planned defensively and got the looks we wanted on the offensive end.”
The Hawks (21-5) advance to face No. 2 Greenbrier East in Friday’s semifinal at 9 p.m.
A hot-shooting start from guard Zoe Murphy aided the Hawks in a big way. The senior entered the quarterfinal averaging 8.7 points and made three 3-pointers in the first 6:29 of action.
“It felt great and got my confidence going,” Murphy said of making her first try 35 seconds into the contest. “It helped me shoot throughout the game.”
The Hawks also held a 12-2 advantage in points off turnovers through the first eight minutes, allowing them to create early separation.
Murphy made her fourth and final 3 of the contest in the second quarter, and the Hawks led by at least 17 throughout the period before taking a 35-17 lead into halftime.
“Anytime you dig yourself a 22-7 hole, you’re playing uphill,” Martinsburg coach Kyle Triggs said. “When we made a run, University answered. They made shots and they’re a good basketball team. We spotted them fifteen points and that’s tough to come back from.”
At the break, UHS’ Ashten Boggs had 10 rebounds, while teammate Mallory Napolillo was a major factor with eight points on 4-of-5 shooting to go with three steals.
UHS also made 13-of-25 field-goal attempts in the first half, something Price partially attributed to practicing earlier this week at the WVU Coliseum.
“It gave us an idea of how to find that rim with the backdrop,” Price said.
Amelia Jenkins started the second half with a trey and Morgane Andrews followed by making 1-of-2 free throws to bring the Bulldogs (18-6) to within 14, but that was as close as they’d get the rest of the way.
Boggs continued to dominate inside and began to find her offense, scoring eight third-quarter points to help the Hawks take a 49-32 lead into the fourth.
Napolillo and Boggs scored 11 of the Hawks’ 13 points in the fourth quarter to end any thought of a Bulldogs’ rally.
Boggs finished with 19 points and 18 rebounds, while Napolillo scored 15 points in the win.
“One of the big things I’ve always been told is with your ability you need to score and get rebounds,” Boggs said. “My mentality is to go get the ball and put it in the basket.”
Murphy added 12 points on the four treys.
Jenkins was Martinsburg’s lone double figure scorer with 11 points.
The Bulldogs made only 11-of-47 field-goal attempts for 23.4 percent shooting.
“We talk about keying in no matter what we’re in and get to shooters,” Price said. “Mallory anchors the middle and does a lot for us to help get players to where they need to be.”
