SEBASTIAN — K.P. Pound did all she could in her final basketball game for Sebastian River High. She scored 33 points, battled Freedom High’s potent scoring combination of Faith Woodard and Taylor Emery and even helped the Sharks bring the ball up the court when the Patriots’ fullcourt press rattled Sebastian River in the early moments of the game.
That’s why Saturday’s 74-73 home court loss to Freedom in the Class 7A regional finals hurt so much.
Sebastian River rallied back from a 14-point deficit with 3 minutes, 30 seconds to play in the third quarter. Pound rolled to her left off a screen near the free-throw line for a layup and converted the ensuing free throw for a 3-point play to give the Sharks a 73-70 advantage with 1:05 remaining in the game.
The Sharks, who finished the season with a 23-3 record, were able to stop shots by Emery and Woodard on the ensuing possession, but they turned the ball over on an errant pass. Emery made two free throws after she was fouled on a drive to whittle the margin to 73-72 with 49.5 seconds remaining.
There’s no shot clock in girls basketball, so Sebastian River had the option of holding the ball to end the game. After avoiding a possible double dribble as it advanced the ball upcourt, a potential layup then looked too enticing to ignore for the Sharks. It failed to go in the basket as Woodard, who has signed a letter of intent to play for Georgetown University next season, converted a breakaway layup on the other end to give Freedom a 74-73 lead with 12 seconds remaining.
“This loss was really tough,” said Pound, who will play for Florida International next season. “We could have won. All we had to do was hold the ball for 20 seconds. I think we got too excited. We didn’t need a layup. If we had held the ball, they would have had to foul us.”
Tayler Smith’s layup rolled off the rim and Woodard snatched a rebound away from Pound as she was fouled on the play with 3 seconds remaining. Woodard missed the free throw, and Sebastian River was able to grab the rebound and call timeout with 2.3 seconds to play. The Sharks, however, were in their own back court and unable to get off a good shot before the buzzer sounded.
“We needed to hold the ball,” Sebastian River coach Terri Amy said. “We did such a great job of coming back. I can’t complain because the girls dug deep to fight their way back. I think we made some silly mistakes and turned the ball over some early to fall behind.”
Woodard scored 25 points, Emery finished with 19 points and Whitney Ivey added 15 points for Freedom, which advanced to the State Final Four in Lakeland. The Patriots, who improved to 25-3, will play Friday in the Class 7A semifinals.
Sebastian River fell short in its bid to repeat as the Class 7A state champion.
“I thought we would have to foul, foul, foul at the end, but I had faith in our defense,” Freedom coach Laurie Pacholke said. “Sebastian River has a great team, and I knew they would be tough in that situation. I’m glad it came out in our favor.”
Emery made a jumper from the right corner and Woodard’s powerful move in the low post gave Freedom a 50-36 lead with 5:09 to play in the third quarter. Freshman Caitlyn Smith scored the Sharks’ first points of the second half with a 3-pointer from the left corner to end a scoring drought of 3 minutes, 9 seconds. But Woodard, who averages nearly 22 points a game for the Patriots made two free throws. Another 3-pointer for the Sharks, who made eight in the game, by Pound from just to the right of the top of the circle cut the deficit to 10 points at 52-42.
But Ivey converted a backdoor layup and Emery’s pull-up jumper on a fastbreak gave Freedom a 56-42 lead with 3:30 to play in the third quarter.
“We knew that they were too good a team not to come back,” Pacholke said. “They were not going to roll over. They know what it’s like because they’ve been in these situations before. They also had an advantage playing at home. It was a 2 1/2-hour drive for our fans and they gave us some great support.”
Pound drove the baseline to score on a short jumper and followed that with a jumper from the right side. She then converted a follow-up shot on a reverse and the ensuing free throw to trim the margin to 56-51 with 1:28 to play in the third quarter.
Tayler Smith, who finished with eight points and played strong interior defense for the Sharks, grabbed a rebound and made a follow-up shot. Katie Taylor’s 3-point shot from the left corner, and Jasmine Hodges’ steal and fastbreak layup capped a 14-0 flurry to tie the game at 56 with 8 seconds to go in the quarter.
Sebastian River forced a traveling violation, but Woodard stole the ensuing inbound pass and was fouled with less than a second remaining as she drove to the basket. She made the two free throws to give Freedom a 58-56 lead after three quarters.
Woodard made another two free throws after she was fouled on a strong low post move with 5:13 remaining in the contest as the Patriots extended their lead to 64-60.
Smith then made consecutive 3-point shots, one from the left corner and another from the right side, to lift Sebastian River to a 66-64 advantage with 3:48 to play.
“That was huge for us,” Amy said. “She’s just a freshman.”
Woodard tied it with another strong move in the low post, but Micaela Martinelli helped the Sharks regain the lead with two free throws after she was fouled on a follow-up shot.
Monet Williams, who had played the role of distributor for the Patriots most of the night, drove the middle for a layup and followed that with a breakaway layup to give Freedom a 70-68 lead. Williams scored each of her six points in the fourth quarter.
“Monet has got that toughness,” Pacholke said. “She knows when it’s time and when to get it done.”
Miah Shephard converted two free throws after she was fouled on a fastbreak to tie it at 70 with 2:08 remaining.
A little more than a minute later, Pound gave the Sharks a three-point lead they thought they would not relinquish.
“K.P. was so relentless,” Woodard said. “She’s definitely one of the top kids in the state. It was the most nerve wracking game. “I’ll never forget it for the rest of my life. It still feels like a dream. We just didn’t want to lose.”
Taylor had 10 points for Sebastian River, while Smith and Shephard added nine points apiece.
Emery and Ivey each had 13 points and Woodard added 11 as the Patriots build a 46-36 advantage at halftime.
