By Jed Blackwell/The Spartanburg Sports Report
With a fragile lead down to just one point, Dorman’s Jasmine Webb put Fort Mill away.
Webb, Dorman’s senior post player, scored nine of her game-high 14 points the the Lady Cavaliers’ decisive fourth quarter as they took a 49-39 victory over Fort Mill to advance to the second round of the girls’ 5A playoffs.
Dorman led 29-18 at the half before Fort Mill started to chip away at the lead throughout the third quarter. Meredith Christopher knocked down a 3-pointer to get Fort Mill within six points early in the quarter. After a see-saw battle for much of the frame, Grayce Black hit a 3 to push Dorman’s lead back to nine at 36-27, but baskets by Kimber Haley, Christopher and Wallace Cortazar trimmed the lead to 36-33 after three quarters.
Cortazar made a layup to open the fourth quarter that trimmed Dorman’s advantage to 36-35, and Webb took over. The senior made back-to-back tough inside buckets, and following a Fort Mill free throw she converted another basket for a 42-36 advantage. Alexis Rice made it 44-36 with 4:06 to play, and Dorman would make five of six from the line down the stretch, including three of four from Webb, to clinch the 10-point victory.
“That’s how important she is,” Dorman coach Val Whiteside said of Webb. “When we were trying to hold the ball and take their post player and put her on the bottom or hide her somewhere, I said that I needed Jasmine up in the front court because I knew she’d make her free throws. Give it to her and let her foul her. She’ll make them.”
Dorman will host Westside in second round action on Friday at 7:00.
In other 5A action Tuesday night, No. 3 seed Byrnes fell to Clover 63-54, and Rock Hill beat No. 4 seed Boiling Springs 59-24.
