BERNE - South Adams High School was the scene for the 2A South Adams Regional. The Manchester Squires took on the Taylor Titans in Saturday's second semifinal game.

Taylor was ranked third in the state and Manchester seventh coming into the game. The Titans held off the Squires 42-41 to advance to the final game against Fort Wayne Harding.

First quarter action started in a typical state playoff fashion, as both teams traded baskets to keep matters close. The Titans started with a full-court press to force the Squires into six early turnovers.

With the score tied at 11-11 with 2:05 left in the first quarter, Manchester's Sarah Purdy was called for an offensive foul as she drove to the basket. Neither team scored until less than a minute left in the first.

Taylor's Brianne Weeks hit a three-pointer to go up 14-11. Denae Beavers then stole a Squire pass and scored on a lay up as time ran out to complete a 5-0 run. The Titans led at the end of the period 16-11.

"Taylor shot the ball really well in the quarter. They hit a couple of key three-point shots to put us down. Our kids never give and I knew they wouldn't tonight," Manchester head coach Mark Underwood said.

"Manchester plays a great defensive game. Our kids will always find a way to win," Taylor head coach Dennis Bentzler said.

Neither team would score basket within three minutes of the second quarter. Manchester called a time out with 5:59 left in the half.

With 4:50 left, Libby Pattison connected on two free throws to end the scoring drought for both teams. Pattison's two points cut the Titan lead to 16-13.

Terri Oliver hit a three-point shot to put Taylor up six at 19-13. Manchester scored four straight points to cut the lead to 19-17.

Audrey Siebrase pulled down a rebound from a Taylor shot. She then made a perfect pass to Christa Peden who scored on a layup. Manchester tied the game at 19-19, the first tie since early in the first quarter.

The Titan's full court press continued to give Manchester problems. Turnovers led to a 7-0 run by Taylor. The run give a 25-19 half time lead.

"Taylor shot the ball well in the first half. They had five three-point shots from five different players. They are a team that has great depth," Coach Underwood said.

Manchester called a timeout with 4:18 left in the third quarter. Taylor increased its lead to 31-23. After the timeout Casey Thomas hit a jumper to cut the lead to 31-25.

Pattison was fouled after a Taylor turnover sending her to the line. She hit both to cut the lead to 31-27. After a Squire rebound Katie Bowers hit a three-pointer to cut the lead to 31-30.

Oliver returned the favor. She hit a three-pointer to go up 34-30. The Squires regained the ball with 8.9 seconds left. Bowers hit a jumper as time ran out. The score cut the Titan lead to 34-32 to end the quarter.

"Our gals just never gave up tonight. There was no doubt in my mind that they would never ever give up," Underwood said.

Siebrase hit a jumper to tie the score at 34-34 to start the quarter. Manchester forced Taylor to throw the ball away. Pattison scored on a put back from her own shot to give Manchester their first lead at 36-34.

Taylor put together another run. The Titans outscored the Squires 6-0 to take a 40-36 lead with less than five minutes left.

Taylor went into a four-corner offense and ate more than two minutes off the clock. This move by the Titans forced Manchester to come out and play pressure defense. Taylor threw the ball away with 2:28 left in the game.

Thomas drove and pulled up for a short jumper to cut the lead to 40-38 with 1:44 left. Pattison then hit a jumper to tie the score at 40-40.

Taylor called a timeout with 55.1 left in the game. At 42.7 seconds Taylor's Oliver was fouled. She went to the line to shoot a one-and-one. She hit both to put Taylor back on top 42-40.

Manchester was forced to call a time out with 32.4 left to avoid a 10-second violation. With 9.8 seconds left, Siebrase went to the line to shoot two.

Siebrase hit the first one to cut the lead to one 42-41. She missed the second. Pattison fought for the rebound and put the ball back up. The shot hit off the rim securing a 42-41 win for Taylor.

"At the end our goal was to free up Purdy for a three-point shot. I told them that if we could not get the open shot then go into a motion offense," Underwood said.

Pattison led the Squires with 12 points and nine rebounds. Peden added eight and Bowers finished with seven.

Also scoring for the Squires were Thomas and Siebrase with six each. Purdy added two points to round out the scoring.

"There are a few things that the girls could have done different that could have got us a couple of more points. There are a million things I could have done different. It was just that type of game. There are also some life lessons to be learned out of this type of game," Underwood said.

Manchester finishes 18-3 on the year. The also won a share of the Three Rivers Conference title.

"We have won as a team all year. I told them that we will lose as a team. I will miss our four seniors. They gave us great leadership. They are like daughters to me. I wish them luck as they journey on to college," said Underwood.

TAYLOR 42, MCHESTER 41

Manch 11 8 13 9 - 41

Taylor 16 10 8 8 - 42

Manchester FG FT R S Pts.

*Thomas 3-5 0-0 2 1 6

*Purdy 1-3 0-0 4 3 2

*Pattison 4-8 4-4 9 2 12

*Siebrase 2-7 2-6 6 2 6

*Peden 3-7 2-2 4 0 8

Bowers 3-5 0-0 0 0 7

Andersen 0-1 0-0 0 0 0

Totals 16-36 8-12 25 8 41

Taylor FG FT R S Pts.

*Dunlap 2-9 0-0 1 0 6

*B. Oliver 0-1 0-0 0 0 0

*McWhorter 4-8 0-0 4 2 9

*Lasley 0-2 0-0 0 1 0

*Tophel 1-4 2-2 7 0 4

T. Oliver 4-6 3-4 2 2 14

Beavers 1-3 1-2 3 1 3

Weeks 1-2 0-0 1 0 3

Jarrett 1-1 0-0 0 0 3

Totals 14-36 6-8 18 6 42

Three-point goals - Manchester 1-6 (Bowers 1-2), Taylor 8-21 (T. Oliver 3-4, Dunlap 2-7, Jarrett 1-1, McWhorter 1-2, Weeks 1-2). Turnovers - Manchester 21, Taylor 16. Fouls - Manchester 12, Taylor 14. Fouled out - None. [[In-content Ad]]