Through the tears in her eyes, Sadie Webb still was able to manage a smile when she walked up to receive her medal after the Emporia High girls’ 46-41 victory over Shawnee Heights on Saturday in the championship game of the Glacier’s Edge Tournament.
Though she was in pain, not much was going to keep her from enjoying the moment.
“I forgot about the pain for a minute,” Webb said. “I just told myself, ‘OK, I can do this. I can go up there and get (the medal).’”
Webb, a senior, was in on two of the most crucial plays down the stretch for the Lady Spartans, who won their second straight Glacier’s Edge title, but not before EHS had to hold off a furious fourth-quarter rally by the Lady Thunderbirds.
Webb took a hard charge from Heights’ Taylor Floyd with just more than 2 minutes remaining — she fell hard and hit her tailbone on the play — and then sank two free throws with 12 seconds left to ice the game for the Lady Spartans.
“She was hurting pretty bad, and she showed a lot of toughness,” EHS coach Bill Nienstedt said. “She’s a tough kid, and I’m proud of her. She has always been a good player, but wasn’t nearly that tough.
“She couldn’t have done that two years ago, I guarantee it.”
Webb’s late-game exploits — and the pain that went with them — might not have been necessary had Emporia High been able to sustain the form it showed in knocking Shawnee Heights around at the beginning of the game.
The Lady Spartans began the game on a 15-0 run and led 15-1 at the end of the first quarter, hitting 5 of 12 shots — including a pair of 3-pointers by Nichole Naab. But more importantly, EHS held Heights to 0-for-6 shooting from the field and forced six Lady T-Bird turnovers, with Heights’ lone point coming on a free throw by Sara Schreiner with 35 seconds left in the period.
“We were playing good defense, and we were taking good shots,” Naab said. “We were attacking and weren’t just settling for outside shots. We were driving and attacking and getting fouls.”
It appeared as though that would be all the separation the Lady Spartans would need, because heading into the fourth quarter, EHS still led 34-24 and had held the Lady T-Birds to 7-of-24 shooting (29 percent) through the first three quarters.
But things took a dramatic turn in the final frame, as Heights finally found its shooting touch.
Back-to-back layups by Sami McHenry closed the gap to 38-30 with 3 minutes to go. On Heights’ next possession, Webb took a charge on Floyd that took away a basket, but it also sent Webb out of the game.
“I just stood there and let her hit me,” Webb said. “I got up, and I knew I needed out. The pain was pretty bad. I could barely walk.”
EHS still led by double digits at 43-32 with 1:16 left, but then the Lady T-Birds went off from behind the arc, as McHenry, Schreiner and Nicole Tomes hit back-to-back-to-back 3-pointers to cut the lead to 43-41 with 34 seconds remaining.
“Give them credit for making big shots,” Nienstedt said. “We did get kind of out of sorts defensively, and too often, we weren’t very focused defensively there late. That gave them some open looks that we hadn’t been giving them.”
That’s when Webb went back into the game, and after Brittany Meza gave Emporia a three-point lead at 44-41 by making 1 of 2 free throws with 25 seconds left, Webb got a steal and was fouled, sending her to the line with 12 seconds to go.
The senior knocked down both shots, and Heights missed a last-ditch 3-pointer to end it.
“Lexi (Hileman) told me when I went to the line, she said, ‘Forget the pain and knock these down,’” Webb said. “I just tried to not think about them and tried to shoot them like I usually do.”
The victory set off a celebration for EHS, one that included the traditional dip in the school pool.
Webb finished with 11 points and was named the tournament MVP. Naab scored 13 points and Hileman added six, as each joined Webb on the All-Tournament team.
“It’s a really great accomplishment to win this tournament two years in a row,” Webb said. “My first two years, we weren’t even in the championship game, and then to win it two years in a row is just awesome. I liked being able to jump in the pool twice.”
Emporia 46, Shawnee Heights 41
Glacier’s Edge Championship
Saturday at EHS
Shawnee Heights 1 14 9 17 — 41
Emporia 15 12 7 12 — 46
Shawnee Heights (9-3) — Nicole Tomes, 3-6 0-2 7, Sami McHenry 3-5 0-0 7, Sara Schreiner 3-7 3-4 10, Taylor Floyd 2-7 4-5 8, Jordan Bigham 1-6 2-2 4, Angelica Guerrero 0-1 0-0 0, Emily McGinnis 0-2 0-0 0, Cierra Ceazar 2-2 1-1 5, Lauren Torrez 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 14-36 10-14 41.
Emporia (11-2) — Brittany Meza 2-3 0-0 4, Sadie Webb 4-11 3-4 11, Lindy Arndt 1-5 3-4 5, Nichole Naab 4-10 3-4 13, Lexi Hileman 2-6 2-3 6, Hilary Heinrichs 1-2 0-1 2, Rachelle VanGundy 0-3 0-0 0, Ashley Leihsing 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 15-42 11-16 46.
3-point goals — SH 3-6 (Tomes 1-1, McHenry 1-1, Schreiner 1-3, Bigham 0-1), Emporia 2-6 (Meza 0-1, Naab 2-4, VanGundy 0-1). Rebounds — SH 26 (Floyd, Bigham 6), Emporia 30 (Arndt 6). Assists — SH 3 (3 tied at 1), Emporia 6 (Arndt, Hileman 2). Turnovers — SH 17, Emporia 14. Total fouls — SH 17, Emporia 16.