HARRISON -- Farmington girls basketball coach Brad Johnson knows there is a good chance his team could face Harrison again in the upcoming days, and maybe more than once before the season is completed.
The first round of this ongoing battle between the 4A-1 Conference leaders, though, belonged to the Lady Cardinals.
Farmington used a 10-0 run to take the lead for good, then pulled away in the third quarter to claim a 74-60 victory over Harrison in the regular-season finale Friday night in Goblin Arena. The win allows the Lady Cardinals (25-3, 12-0) to complete an unbeaten run through league play and snapped the Lady Goblins' 24-game winning streak.
"I think Harrison is one of the single-best teams in the state, and we know that," Johnson said. "They're a legitimate threat to win the whole thing. So for us to be able to go away from home, play one of the top teams in the state and play well, that's huge. It gives us another wave of momentum getting ready for the district tournament."
Farmington, however, first had to find a way to keep Harrison (24-2, 10-1) off the offensive boards. The Lady Goblins converted 6 offensive rebounds into 10 points in the first quarter and owned a 17-14 lead, then Caroline Cecil's 3-pointer to start the second quarter doubled that margin.
That all changed midway through the second quarter as Trinity Johnson hit back-to-back buckets to begin a 10-0 run as Farmington claimed a 32-26 lead. Sydney Shrum's rare four-point play helped pull Harrison within 32-30 before halftime, but Audrey Culpepper -- who had been scoreless in the first half -- hit 10 points in the third quarter and helped the Lady Cardinals stretch their lead to a 54-40 margin.
"First of all, we were able to get a couple of stops defensively," Brad Johnson said. "We knew it was going to be a game of runs. You're not going to be able to keep Harrison from going on a run, so we prepped for it. We told them if they go on a run, weather it, stop it and answer it.
"We caught them a couple of times in matchup issues and managed to get downhill, then our kids just hit some shots. At this point of the year, you have to be able to go stop-score-stop a bunch to control runs and get on one. I thought we did that."
Harrison tried to get back into the game in the fourth quarter and pulled within 63-56 on Brynn Oleson's 3-pointer with 2 minutes, 8 seconds remaining. Farmington, however, closed out the game with the combination of Makenna Vanzant and Tori Kersey hitting 11 of 12 free throws.
Kersey had 10 points in the first quarter and finished with 22 to lead Farmington, followed by Vanzant with 21 and Culpepper with 15. Marion Groberg had 20 to lead Harrison, while Shrum added 14.
Farmington 14 18 22 20 -- 74
Harrison 17 13 10 20 -- 60
Farmington (25-3, 12-0): Kersey 22, Vanzant 21, Culpepper 15, Tidwell 8, Johnson 6, Brye 2.
Harrison (24-2, 10-1): Groberg 20, Shrum 14, Oleson 9, Cecil 6, Hudson 4, Salmon 3, Parker 2, Gilliam 2.
Boys
Farmington 54, Harrison 44
Farmington scored eight straight points to start the fourth quarter and took the lead for good as the Cardinals defeated Harrison.
Decorey Thomas' three-point play and 3-pointer erased a 31-29 deficit, and Austin Shelley's bucket gave Farmington (15-8, 8-4) a 37-31 lead with 6:17 remaining. Harrison (11-17, 3-8) pulled within 47-44 on back-to-back buckets by Blake Edwards and had a chance to get closer, but Devonte Donovan's steal and layup ended any Goblin comeback.
Shelley had 14 points to lead a trio of Farmington players in double figures, followed by Carson Simmons with 13 and Donavan with 12. Ben Elliott had 16 for Harrison, while Edwards added 13 and Gabe Huskey chipped in 12.
Both teams head to conference tournament play at Prairie Grove as Harrison plays Gentry in Monday's first-round action, while Farmington returns to action Wednesday against Tuesday's winner between Berryville and Gravette.
Farmington 12 7 10 25 -- 54
Harrison 6 15 9 13 -- 44
Farmington (15-8, 8-4): Shelley 14, Simmons 13, Donovan 12, Landwehr 8, Thomas 6, Watson 1.
Harrison (11-17, 3-8): Elliott 16, Edwards 13, Huskey 12, Plumlee 3.
Preps Sports on 02/15/2020