GIRLS BASKETBALL Beck leads Fayetteville to win in rivalry

SPRINGDALE — Coriah Beck was close to fouling out Tuesday when she picked up her fourth foul late in the third quarter.

Fortunately for Fayetteville, she didn’t.

Beck took over in the fourth quarter and finished with 23 points to lead Fayetteville to a 53-45 victory over rival Springdale in 7A-West Conference action at the Bulldogs gym. Beck had eight points in the fourth quarter after she returned to the court with six minutes left to play.

“When I put (Beck) back in the game, that’s when everything changed,” Fayetteville coach Vic Rimmer said. “She had some quick buckets and made a couple of defensive plays. She was definitely a difference-maker for us.”

Fayetteville (13-0, 21-3) needs only a victory at home over Van Buren on Friday to finish unbeaten in conference play for the second consecutive season. Fayetteville defeated Van Buren 59-39 in the teams’ first meeting on Jan.

26.

Beck picked up her fourth foul with 19.2 seconds left in the third quarter. She returned in the fourth quarter and posted down low to score six quick points. Jasmine Franklin added two baskets before Beck scored again to give Fayetteville a 51-42 lead.

Sasha Goforth added 14 points and Franklin 11 points for Fayetteville, which pounded the ball inside after making all four of its 3-pointers in the first half. Marquesha Davis scored 19 and Sarah Vogel 10 to lead Springdale (17-9, 8-5).

Fayetteville used three 3-pointers by Davis and one from Kennedy Bobbitt to grab a 17-5 lead. But Spring-dale responded on its home court behind Davis, who had a subpar performance in the loss at Fayetteville earlier this season.

Davis had 13 points in the first half, including three consecutive baskets with a baseline jumper to put Springdale ahead 24-22. Jeniya Gause, Sarah Vogel, and Thaly Sysavanh each hit 3-pointers to contribute to the surge.

Fayetteville was 9 of 17 from the free-throw line while Springdale was 8 of 12.

VAN BUREN 50, SPRINGDALE HAR-BER 36

Van Buren senior guard Jamilyn Kinney had some good looks at the basket that just didn’t fall in the first half. That quickly changed after the break. Kinney hit five of her team’s seven 3-point baskets in the third quarter and scored 21 points in her final home game at Clair Bates Arena on Tuesday. Kinney ranks second all-time in career points for Van Buren. Kayleigh Evans chipped in 10 for the Lady Pointers. Har-Ber was (12-14, 5-8 7A-West) led by Krislyn Smith’s team-high 11 points, including hitting three 3-point baskets for the Lady Wildcats. Van Buren (17-9, 8-5 7A-West) was down 19-15 at the break and didn’t hold a lead in the first half. Kinney was able to change that quickly in the third quarter. She capped a 12-0 run to open the period with a 3-point basket to take a 27-19 lead.

BENTONVILLE WEST 41, ROGERS HIGH 28

West held Rogers without a field goal for the last 9 minutes, 22 seconds and enjoyed a victory in its final home game of the season. The Lady Wolverines (9-16, 2-11) took a 28-26 lead into the fourth quarter, thanks to a Shania Wilson bucket with 1:06 left in the third quarter. West then outscored Rogers (12-14, 5-8) 13-2 over the final 8 minutes, with the Lady Mounties’ only points coming on free throws. Wilson had 15 points to lead West, while Ally Figenskau had 11 to pace Rogers, which remains tied with Springdale Har-Ber for fifth place heading into Friday’s regular-season finales.

BENTONVILLE HIGH 60, ROGERS HERITAGE 28

The Lady Tigers broke away with a 15-1 second-quarter run to claim the No. 2 seed out of the 7A-West Conference for next week’s Class 7A state tournament. Sophomore Emily Sanders led a balanced attack for Bentonville (21-5, 10-3 7A-West) with a game-high 15 points. Senior Emma Palasak added 12 points off the bench and Avery Hughes chipped in 11 for the Lady Tigers, who led 34-18 at halftime. Pam Seiler and Kayla Richardson led Heritage (8-17, 1-12) with six points each.

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