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Lady Cats control own destiny at tournament

  • Lauryn Kadela hits a shot to give Marion a 57-54 lead over Herrin with 17 seconds left Thursday night.

    Lauryn Kadela hits a shot to give Marion a 57-54 lead over Herrin with 17 seconds left Thursday night.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Abby Bayer scores her 1,000th career point.

    Abby Bayer scores her 1,000th career point.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Abby Bayer's father scoops up the game ball.

    Abby Bayer's father scoops up the game ball.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Marion head coach Mike Manfredo

    Marion head coach Mike Manfredo
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Jasa Bell shoots between Marissa Russell and Layla Wade.

    Jasa Bell shoots between Marissa Russell and Layla Wade.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Jordan Turner loses the ball out of bounds after colliding with Herrin's Morgan McKinnies.

    Jordan Turner loses the ball out of bounds after colliding with Herrin's Morgan McKinnies.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Jackie Drury hits a free throw with 32 seconds left.

    Jackie Drury hits a free throw with 32 seconds left.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Abby Bayer drives against Gallatin County.

    Abby Bayer drives against Gallatin County.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • McKenzie Orange fights for a loose ball.

    McKenzie Orange fights for a loose ball.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Abby Bayer chases down a ball.

    Abby Bayer chases down a ball.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Jordan Turner puts in a layup.

    Jordan Turner puts in a layup.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Maddie Goodley guards Audrey Jackson.

    Maddie Goodley guards Audrey Jackson.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Cassandra Woods goes for a loose ball.

    Cassandra Woods goes for a loose ball.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Abby Bayer hits a 3-pointer to send Wednesday's game into overtime.

    Abby Bayer hits a 3-pointer to send Wednesday's game into overtime.
    Justin Walker Photo

  • Jordan Turner takes in a layup in overtime.

    Jordan Turner takes in a layup in overtime.
    Justin Walker Photo

 
updated: 11/17/2017 1:25 AM

MARION -- With a pair of nail-biting victories, the Marion High School girls basketball team has itself in position to win the Heartland Regional Lady Cat Tip-Off Classic tournament.
Marion outlasted Gallatin County in overtime, 62-52 on Wednesday, then held on to beat Herrin in Thursday's session, 59-54.
Now the tournament comes down to its last game when Marion plays Vienna on Friday night at 7 p.m.
Vienna lost its opener to Herrin but is 2-1 after beating Massac County and Gallatin County. And although Marion is 3-0, it will need to beat the Lady Eagles to avoid the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Marion's Abby Bayer passed the 1,000-point mark for her career in Thursday's win over Herrin. She reached the milestone and surpassed it with free throws at the 1:54 mark of the second quarter.
Bayer also had the biggest shot of Wednesday's win over Gallatin County when she drained a 3-pointer with 32.2 seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 50. Gallatin County's Audrey Jackson had a shot at the buzzer but missed.
Marion dominated the overtime, with Bayer scoring four of her 19 points and Lauryn Kadela also puting in four of her 10 points. Jordan Turner, who gave Marion the lead with a layup, added six.
Gallatin County's Hailey Chubb had 33 points against Marion and then put in 40 against Vienna on Thursday but the Lady Hawks fell in both games.
Against Herrin, the Lady Wildcats went on a 13-0 run in the first half -- and that was before Bayer's milestone moment -- and Marion went into halftime with a 28-17 lead.
McKenzie Orange converted after nifty passes from both Bayer and Turner in the third quarter and Marion's lead was 45-32 after free throws by Jackie Drury, but the Lady Tigers got hot from outside and eventually tied it up.
Herrin got 3-pointers from Madison Russell, Madison Blankenship, Madison Johnson and Morgan McKinnies to chip away and pulled even at 53 on free throws by Marissa Russell with 39.6 seconds left.
Bayer split a pair and then Madison Russell missed two tosses, Drury split a pair and Marissa Russell did the same and Marion clung to a 55-54 lead with 31.2 seconds to play.
Kadela sank the big shot of the game with 17 seconds left when she bounced in a jumper from the foul line area for a three-point lead.
Daishen Wolaver then stole the ball on Herrin's end and Kadela iced it with two free throws with 2.6 left.
Four players reached double figures for Herrin, which made 10 treys but went 6 of 13 from the charity stripe. Marissa Russell and Blankenship both had 12 and both Madison Russell and Johnson had 11. Blankenship had four of the triples and Johnson had three.
Bayer finished with 22 points for Marion, which went 21 of 36 from the foul line for the game. Kadela had 12 points, while Orange and Cassandra Woods both had six.
Friday's final session begins with Gallatin County taking on Massac County at 5:30 p.m. before Marion plays Vienna.

 
 
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