POTTSVILLE — Kendra Coyle and Justine Huber made sure Prairie Grove’s girls earned the opportunity to defend their Class 4A state championship.
The duo dominated Dover from the outset Thursday night as they outscored the Lady Pirates by themselves and led the Lady Tigers to a 77-54 victory in the Class 4A North Regional Tournament in George S. Jones Gymnasium.
“Huber and Coyle were just outstanding,” Prairie Grove coach Kevin Froud said. “We have other players that can go out there and score, but we didn’t need them that much.
“You could tell those two wanted to play next week. You could see it in their eyes, and now the pressure’s off. That’s the main thing.”
Coyle, the senior guard and Ouachita Baptist signee, finished with 33 points to lead Prairie Grove (23-7), which completed a first-round sweep of 4A-1 Conference teams with the win.
Huber, the sophomore post, provided the perfect complement with a 25-point outing after not playing in the Lady Tigers’ loss to Shiloh Christian in the district tournament last weekend.
“That inside-outside combination Prairie Grove has is dangerous,” Dover coach Irvin Fairfield said. “That’s an impressive one-two punch. That 24 (Coyle) and 25 (Huber) had a pair of All-State performances.
“They’ve been there before and know how to play at another level, while we’re just at the tip of the iceberg. We played hard, but we made some inexperienced mistakes out there.”
Kari Scott gave Dover (18-10) its only lead by hitting the first basket of the game. Huber and Coyle took over after that as Prairie Grove raced to a 21-9 first-quarter lead.
Prairie Grove’s biggest lead came at the end of the third quarter, when Whitnee Fitts’ 3-pointer gave the Lady Tigers a 67-40 cushion.
Coyle and Huber were the only players in double figures for Prairie Grove, which plays Gravette at 7 p.m. today in the semifinals. Gentry, a 63-58 winner over Pottsville in Thursday’s first game, plays Shiloh Christian in the 4 p.m. contest.
Scott led Dover with 15 points.
PREP BASKETBALL
CLASS 4A NORTH REGION TOURNAMENT
GIRLS
GENTRY 63, POTTSVILLE 58
Gentry 14 13 16 20 — 63
Pottsville 9 17 15 17 — 58
Gentry (21-9): Boyd 17, Jones 15, Millsap 10, Arnold 9, Cripps 8, Speer 2, Folker 2.
Pottsville (22-8): Van Es 17, Talley 17, Allen 9, Huie 5, Renard 4, Howard 2, Beaton 2, Cole 2.
PRAIRIE GROVE 77, DOVER 54
Dover 9 16 15 14 — 54
Prairie Grove 21 25 21 10 — 77
Dover (18-10): Scott 15, Ivy 13, Little 8, Williams 8, Wilbanks 6, Worsham 4.
Prairie Grove (23-7): Coyle 33, Huber 24, Barnett 5, Lumsargis 3, Galloway 3, H. Fitts 3, W. Fitts 3, Bryant 2.