4th-quarter run pushes North Summit girls over Beaver in 2A semifinals

CEDAR CITY — The first game of the 2A girls basketball semifinals ended with a 54-40 win for the higher seed. North Summit, who earned a first-round bye, topped Beaver to punch a ticket to the finals Friday.

Chezlie Langston wasted no time getting her Braves on the board. She opened up the game with a layup and followed with a jumper, putting the score at 4-0.

The early glory was short-lived, though. Beaver answered with a 9-0 run, led entirely by Alina Lurth and Danzee Bradshaw. As the first quarter went on, so did Bradshaw. She hit three shots from 3-point range in the first quarter alone and led all scorers with 9 points.

North Summit outscored Beaver 16-6 in the second quarter of play.

Presley Peterson put up half of the team's points while they held the Beavers down, and they entered the break with a 25-21 edge. Bradshaw was kept to just 2 points, but when the half came to an end, she led the court with seven rebounds.

The third quarter was a bit more even as the teams quite literally traded shots through the entire eight minutes; neither side hit consecutive shots. Beaver slowed down in the fourth quarter, though.

Despite scoring the first 3 points of the period, their performance significantly fell apart. The Braves answered with 15 straight points and didn't let the Beavers get back on the board until only a minute remained in the game. Though Beaver picked up its intensity in the final seconds, the team couldn't get anything to go.

Following the 54-40 victory, the No. 1-seeded North Summit will head to the championship game Saturday at 5 p.m.

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