Delta girls basketball season ends in Class 1 sectional

~ Delta fell to hot-shooting Naylor 48-23 in the Class 1 girls playoff game

DEXTER, Mo. -- There was a big difference between the conditions inside and outside the Bearcat Event Center on Tuesday night.

It was windy and warm outside. Naylor was raining long-distance shots on the inside.

The Eagles connected on 10 3-pointers and shut down Delta in a 48-23 rout in a girls Class 1 sectional.

"That's one thing we're capable of doing," Naylor coach Gene Deckard said. "We've got some really fine shooters, and more than one or two. We felt like if we come with some effort and we shot the ball well, we'd be fine."

Delta’s Machela VanGennip shoots over Naylor’s Taylor Day during the first quarter of their Class 1 sectional game Tuesday in Dexter, Mo. (Fred Lynch)

Naylor did more than shoot the ball well. The Eagles connected on seven 3-pointers in the first half.

It was a frustrating sight for the Bobcats.

"We knew they had 3-point shooters," Delta senior Tori Burton said. "Coach told us to get out on the shooters, but I guess we just failed to do that."

Delta coach Randy White came away impressed by the Eagles.

"We didn't shoot the ball well," White said. "And I don't know if they shoot like that all the time, but they really shot the heck out of the ball. They're the best 3-point-shooting team we've run into all year long."

Delta’s Alysha Vessells drives against Naylor’s Lauren Rich during the fourth quarter of their Class 1 sectional game.

Naylor opened the game with back-to-back treys by Andrea Sullivan, and its defense was stingy.

The Bobcats did not attempt a shot until 4 minutes, 47 seconds were left in the first quarter.

Burton made that basket, and Delta added a basket and two free throws to knot the game at 6-6.

The Eagles then halted the Bobcats.

Naylor freshman Shayna Tharp came off the bench and buried back-to-back 3-pointers, helping Naylor take a 13-8 advantage into the second quarter.

Delta's Tori Burton tries to shoot between Naylor's Andrea Sullivan, left, and Taylor Day during the first quarter of their Class 1 sectional Tuesday, March 6, 2012 in Dexter, Mo. (Fred Lynch)

The hot shooting was important for the Eagles, who did not compete in a district tournament. The Eagles had nearly two weeks off before the sectional game.

"It was big," Deckard said about the early 3-pointers. "We knew that if our shooters there, if they got going early and got it in their head that they could do that. ... When we sent freshman Shayna off the bench and then Andrea on one side and Shayna on the other side, that's a lot for a zone to cover."

Deckard was concerned about the long layoff, especially with Delta primed and ready after a district title.

"I hope they put us in a district next year," Deckard said. "I'm tired of hearing people saying we got a gimmie. They have no idea what it's like to try and keep teenage girls interested in putting out effort in March when it's 70 degrees outside."

The Eagles' defense shut down Delta in the second quarter, while the offense continued to click.

Naylor forced 10 turnovers in the second quarter and 18 in the half.

"We were turning the ball over quite a bit," White said. "We knew what they were going to do. They went to a 2-2-1 press at times. They went 1-3-1, see-sawed three-quarter court and half-court, and backed it up. We felt like we were prepared for that, but we just turned the ball over way too much."

The turnovers cost Delta in the second quarter. Naylor scored the first 10 points to go up 23-8.

"We tried to adjust," White said. "We went to a match-up. We went to a straight man. We switched to a zone where four people were supposed to be out. We just didn't get out on them in time."

Naylor continued its hot shooting to take a commanding 30-12 lead into the half.

The Bobcats received no relief in the second half.

Sullivan, a 5-foot-3 sharpshooter, buried Delta's hopes of a comeback. The junior hit six 3-pointers for the game and tallied a game-high 20 points.

Sullivan hit 3-pointers on three of Naylor's first five trips down the court in the third quarter, extending the Eagles' lead to 41-18.

"We knew what we had to do to get here because we've done it for the past three years," Sullivan said. "So we knew [what it would take], but we just had to have that extra effort to push it through."

Sullivan appreciated the help from her teammates, which included three 3-pointers by Tharp.

"A lot of people on our team can shoot," Sullivan said. "But we have those three main people -- me and Shayna and Taylor [Day] -- or Darby [Pruett] steps up really big for us sometimes. But we just come out there and we know what we do best, which is shoot the ball."

The Eagles continued their stifling defense in the second half.

Naylor played a 3-2 zone, and Delta had fits figuring it out.

The Bobcats shot 8 of 21 from the field, but just 2 of 10 from beyond the arc.

"They were definitely getting irritated with our defense because they just kept getting this look on their face," Sullivan said. "And I could tell they weren't getting the shots they wanted to get."

Burton finished with a team-high 10 points for Delta.

"They were just attacking the ball really well," Burton said. "If they thought we had a weak player, they went after them. Any time there was a loose ball, they were on the floor after it."

Four seniors played their final game for Delta -- Burton, Lyndse Hamby, Myra Henson and Macey Parks.

Delta 8 4 8 3 -- 23

Naylor 13 17 11 7 -- 48

DELTA (23) -- Tori Burton 10, Alysha Vessells 2, Machela VanGennip 4, Macey Parks 4, Chasity Taylor 3. FG 8. FT 5-8. F 10. (3-pointers: VanGennip, Burton. Fouled out: none.)

NAYLOR (48) -- Taylor Day 2, Andrea Sullivan 20, Shayna Tharp 13, Ericka Engelman 4, Darby Pruett 5, Charity McCoy 4. FG 17. FT 4-6. F 10. (3-pointers: Sullivan 6, Tharp 3, McCoy. Fouled out: none.)