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OREM — The expected duel between the state's two top scorers in girls basketball saw the stage stolen by a supporting actor.
While Emilee Skinner was in foul trouble and held in check most of the afternoon, it was guard Elise Livingston who picked up the slack with 20 points, including four 3-pointers, as the No. 1 seed Ridgeline Riverhawks completed their successful title defense with a 58-34 rout of No. 2 seeded Snow Canyon Wednesday at the UCCU Center.
"I knew they would be going back and forth," Livingston said. "I just figured I needed to do my role and whatever I could to help the team."
She certainly did. Livingston scored 11 of her 20 points in the second quarter, just seconds after Skinner was sent to the bench with her third foul at the seven-minute mark.
"She's been an incredible player," Ridgeline head coach Ainsli Jenks said of Livingston. "She works hard and just does what we ask her to do."
Livingston was also a vital part of a Riverhawks defense that held the Warriors without a field goal in the entire first quarter. Snow Canyon did not convert from the field until Olivia Hamlin broke the seal with 7:32 left in the second quarter. Hamlin was held to 2 points on 0-for-7 shooting during the stretch, with her lone points coming from the foul line.
Hamlin still finished the game with 19 points as the leading scorer for Snow Canyon.
First-year Warriors head coach Sue Hoskins said getting to be around players like Hamlin made it special for her as a coach.
"They're good kids and get along well, but more importantly, they love the game of basketball," she said. "They're just going to get better and better as time goes on."
Hoskins said the game plan was to guard the 3-point line; Snow Canyon spent most of the afternoon in a 2-3 matchup zone.
"You can't leave them open or they'll knock their shots down," she said. "I thought we did a great job for the most part; we just had a few breakdowns."
Hoskins also called Livingston a potential difference-maker at the next level. "She's an amazing shooter."
Livingston certainly showed off why. She hit three 3-pointers in the second quarter, all from the corner, as the Riverhawks exploded out to a 27-11 halftime edge. The lead got up to 22 in the second half as Ridgeline never let Snow Canyon get within 12 points.
"I had to bring the team together," Livingston said. "I felt confident in myself, but I needed my teammates to feel that, too."
An emotional Jenks said Livingston's performance is just a small glimpse into what the goal has been all season for Ridgeline: to win another state championship. She said one of the biggest lessons she's learned from these players in this dominant run is just how hard they've worked.
"If you came into one of our practices, you'd see they're competing all the time," Jenks said.
"It feels good to know that anyone can take shots, and you always have the green light," Livingston said.
It's no wonder, then, that Jenks felt nothing but pride — and shed some tears of joy — for her team when the final buzzer sounded. She expressed how her group of players will always have a place in her heart.
"I told the girls that I hope I get wedding invitations and baby shower invitations in years to come," she said. "They'll always have a place in my heart because of this run."
