ANTICIPATED TITLE MATCH
DEXTER — The Copenhagen and Sackets Harbor girls basketball teams have advanced to next week's Frontier League "D" Division championship game.
It's a matchup each has been anticipating all season long.
Both the Patriots and Golden Knights, who split two regular season meetings, earned decisive victories Friday during semifinal action at General Brown High School.
In the opener, No. 2 Copenhagen survived a mid-game spurt by No. 4 Lyme before pulling away for a 43-25 victory.
Top seed Sackets Harbor took advantage of a smothering press and Amber Butcher's 23 points en route to a 65-25 decision over No. 4 LaFargeville.
The division final is scheduled for 8 p.m. Thursday at Jefferson Community College.
SACKETS HARBOR 65,
LAFARGEVILLE 25
Butcher's efforts from the opening tip foreshadowed LaFargeville's impending frustrations.
The junior guard struck for nine first-quarter points, including a four-point play, and converted a steal into an easy breakaway layup as Sackets notched the game's first 13 points.
And whether she was helping to trap a Red Knight on defense, or running the floor to receive long passes for easy baskets, Butcher never slowed down.
"She just has a drive to play the game," Sackets coach Sean Haley said. "She wants to push the ball up the court. If the tempo is fast, she wants it faster."
The Patriots (12-5) enjoyed a 35-16 edge after Ashley Butcher's 15-foot jumper beat the halftime buzzer. But it was the first five minutes of the third quarter that sealed the Red Knights' fate.
By the time Haley gave the order to ease the pressure, his team had opened the half on a 16-0 run, and led by 51-16.
"We're doing well on defense right now," said Amber Butcher, who helped the Patriots defensively by moving to the middle of their press alignment. "When we play hard like that we just want to keep it up and keep going until the end."
LaFargeville (4-12), which beat Alexandria in a special playoff to reach the postseason, finally ended its drought on Joan Rhone's 3-pointer with 1:00 left in the third.
"Sackets is a good team, and the reason is their guards," LaFargeville coach Colin Mingle said. "They're aggressive and active. It's not the press that gets you, it's the steals they cause from behind with it because they just don't give up."
The Patriots got another lift from sophomore Olivia Kolb, who provided 13 points nine steals and eight rebounds.
Haley said Kolb "played one of the best games of her career. Since the first half of the season she's started to go from being a role-player to being a scorer for us."
Ashley Butcher also had 13 points.
COPENHAGEN 43, LYME 25
Morgan Kiernan entered the playoffs as one of the top scorers in the entire league, averaging 17.1 points per game for the Golden Knights (12-5).
She turned in a similar performance against the Indians, registering 18 points, 11 rebounds and five steals. But it was senior guard Sarah Jolliff who sparked Copenhagen into the finals by scoring all of her 10 points in the fourth quarter. She also notched three steals.
"Usually when she has a not so good first half, she gets hot in the second," said coach Natalie Scott. "It was huge for us. And it took just a couple shots."
Each was crucial, too, as Copenhagen continued to have trouble putting away Lyme (4-9).
"We just weren't moving the ball well and they were getting hands on our passes," Jolliff said. "Coach asked us how bad we wanted it. We really had to pick it up more."
The Indians led a Jan. 21 meeting between the teams by 10 points at one juncture before the Knights finally earned a 35-26 win. Lyme made this one briefly competitive, too.
Trailing 19-8, the Indians orchestrated a 12-1 run on repeated inside hoops by Ariana Mattraw and Alex Weston. But as Brittany Sharlow's jump shot tied the score 20-20, Copenhagen took over.
"Even if you're up by 10, that lead can evaporate so quickly against them," Lyme coach Dan Lawson said. "They're a tough team for us to match up with, and they're so versatile."
Scott said her team had trouble handling Mattraw's and Mariah Wallace's height advantage in all three meetings, and each managed to block a fair amount of shots Friday.
"When we come up against a bigger inside game and you're getting stuffed all the time it's a little frustrating for the girls," Scott said. "Then we come out of the game plan a little bit."
Copenhagen won its last meeting with the Patriots, 48-41.
"We've been working all year for our games against Sackets," Scott said. "We came up a little short for the league, so this is the one we want."
BEAVER RIVER 37, SOUTH LEWIS 27
Tasha Roes recorded eight points, 10 rebounds and four blocks as the Beavers won a "C" Division semifinal at Carthage.
Ashley Widrick added 13 points and five steals for Beaver River (10-7).
The Beavers play top-seeded Thousand Islands for the title at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at JCC. Thousand Islands routed Sandy Creek 85-12 in the other game.
