SPRINGDALE -- With a little under two minutes left in the second quarter, Shiloh Christian girls basketball coach J.D. Dudley had to make a decision: Keep his top player, who had just picked up her third foul, in the game to help maintain a shrinking lead or pull her out and keep her fresh for the second half.
Dudley elected to go with the latter with junior star Lia Enos, and the dividends showed after she scored 15 of her 22 points in the second half of the team's 45-31 win over the Elkins on Friday night.
"I didn't want her to pick up her fourth one, obviously," Dudley said. "I told her at halftime, 'You can't get another one. You just can't.'"
Enos knocked down nine free throws in the second half, including an and-one opportunity, which became a catalyst for the Saints turnaround during the win.
"She's a horse. She really is," Dudley said.
Shiloh Christian controlled the tempo of the game for a majority of the time but could never quite put the Elks away until the fourth quarter.
Elkins (11-4, 5-2) went on six-point runs in the second and third quarter stay with the Saints, but Shiloh Christian's height down in the post forced the Elks to take rushed shots in the paint the rest of the night, a product of what Dudley called his team's "most complete game we've played this year."
The Elks came as close as four points to tying the Saints after Konley Kestner grabbed an offensive rebound and found Tink Harris in the corner for an open three pointer to cut the lead to 26-22 in the third.
The Saints opened up the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run, forcing the Elks to jump into the full-court press, which had worked well for them in the third. They could not replicate the same success as the Saints found their way to the free-throw line six times within the final minutes of the game to put the lead away.
Saints' Shea Sandefur added nine, including a 3-pointer to open the game, and Anna McCredy pitched in five points to pace the offense after Enos.
KD Miller led the Elks with 10 points and Shelby Diaville and Harris tacked on 7 and 6 points, respectively. Elkins' starting point guard Allison Coleman left the game halfway through the third quarter after getting hit on a layup attempt but came back in during the fourth quarter.
The win gives Shiloh (9-6, 4-4) its third win in four games.
"This win is huge because they're a heck of a basketball team," Dudley said about the Elks. "I've watched them pretty consistently since Prairie Grove, and I'm sitting there watching saying, 'Oh gosh,' because they are really athletic, very well-coached and they got players."
Dudley thinks his team, which has struggled with staying healthy this season, is finally playing with chemistry, he said. In his second year as head coach, his second with having Enos on varsity and his first with five freshmen who were called up, it's finally clicking, he said.
"It boils down to time together, trusting each other, building trust and watching it come together," Dudley said. "We're beginning to see it, but it's two steps forward, one step back, and it would be with a group like this."
Shiloh Christian 45, Elkins 31
Elkins 7 5 12 7 -- 31
Shiloh Christian 13 7 10 15 -- 45
Elkins (11-4): Miller 10, Diaville 7, Harris 6, Ritchie 5, Coleman 2, Kestner 1.
Shiloh Christian (9-6): Enos 22, Sandefur 9, McCredy 5, Johnson 4, Rochelle 2, Glenn 2, May 1.
Boys
Elkins 71, Shiloh Christian 63
The Elkins Elks (12-3, 6-1) came out of the holiday break by earning a win against district opponent Shiloh Christian, 71-63, to rebound after dropping two of its last three.
"We were a little rusty -- missed some easy shots and free throws," Elkins coach Jared Porter said. "The effort was there, and that's what we can always count on with these guys: maximum effort."
Elkins' Ethan Hipps knocked down eight 3-pointers, including two back-to-back shots at the end of the third quarter to take a 58-56 lead the team would not surrender the rest of the game. He finished with a game-high 31 points. All five of the Elkins' starters finished the game in double-digit points.
"He can flat out shoot the basketball, and his capability is 26 feet in," Porter said. "The other guys do a good job of finding him and getting him open looks. He just plays with a confidence that we know if we get him open, he's going to knock shots down."
Jack Hutchinson led the way on offense for the Saints with 29 points. Reagan Neal added 10, including a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter that kept Shiloh in the game late, and six other Saints scored before the game was over.
Elkins will next take the court against Lincoln on Jan. 9. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. Shiloh Christian will travel to West Fork to face the Tigers at 7:30 p.m.
Elkins 71, Shiloh Christian 63
Elkins 16 21 16 18 -- 71
Shiloh Christian 14 18 17 14 --63
Elkins (12-3): Hipps 31, Graham 11, McClain 11, Barnett 8, Evans 8, Vaught 2
Shiloh Christian (7-6): Hutchinson 29, Neal 10, Bryant 6, Turpin 6, Morrison 4, Tollett 3, Rosenfield 3, Russ 2
Sports on 01/06/2018