Lady Dragons roll to title game

By DAN HOEHNE

daniel.hoehne@newssun.com

AVON PARK - It was a sea of green in the city of red Tuesday night as the Lake Placid faithful took their seats in hopes of seeing their Lady Dragons take the next step in this turnaround season.

The Ladies from the Lake did just that, running past DeSoto, 62-37, to advance to the District 10-4A Tournament title game Friday night.

And while the Dragons had handled the Lady Bulldogs twice during the regular season, they weren't quite runaways, with December's 60-44 win being trimmed to 55-43 in January.

"We knew we'd have to try and slow down number 5 (Tishonna Riley) and number 15 (Ladeja Dennis)," Lake Placid head coach Jackie Coyne said.

And while they didn't exactly stop Riley, who scored a game-high 25, the Dragon defense held the rest of the team to just 12.

It was a defense that created turnovers throughout the evening, leading to easy, breakout scores.

Often times with point guard Alex Coyne poking at a dribble from behind then releasing for a lofted pass and fast break.

Six Coyne points, in fact, helped carry Lake Placid during an early dry patch, which saw DeSoto hanging in there down just 12-9 late in the first.

But K'unshe Wilson worked inside for two, Jamacia Gayle took a no-look pass from Coyne for a score in the paint and Coyne finished the run with a drive for a more comfortable 18-9 lead after one.

The lead was made even more comfortable with 10 straight Dragon points to start the second, starting with one of those Coyne poke-and-release fast breaks, followed by another that lead to a Wilson score.

Wilson got a more traditional assist from Coyne on her next score before Bria Wilson hit a jumper in the lane and Gayle took a Coyne feed and popped it in from 10-feet.

The Bulldogs would halt the run with a Riley bucket and free throw, though Raveen Gobourne answered with a score inside.

Another Riley free throw was answered with a K'unshe Wilson score and after Dennis drove to two, Gayle put back an offensive rebound to make it a 34-15 game at the half.

"It was a little sloppy early on and I think a little bit of nerves were a factor," coach Coyne said. "But the girls responded."

They certainly did, though DeSoto made things a bit interesting in the opening minutes of the third.

Dennis hit a long two and Riley scored to answer scores from Gayle and Coyne.

Bianca Robinson then hit a three-pointer, but Gayle and Wilson each scored before Riley got inside for two.

But then Coyne took over for a personal six-point run.

She followed a baseline floater with consecutive steals and lay-ins, then Gayle followed suit with her own steal and drive.

By the time Riley scored again, on a put-back, the quarter was coming to an end and the lead stood at 50-26.

Arnetia Gobourne and Shativia Clarke sandwiched a Coyne free throw with baskets to start the fourth and soon it was time to empty the benches for the final minutes of the win.

The Dragons were lead by Coyne's 20 points, with K'unshe Wilson adding 14 and Gayle 12.

"We've been balanced like that all season, with no one person having to shoulder the scoring load," coach Coyne said. "We just go to where the mismatches are, we find the open girl. The point guards job is to be the floor general and Alex did a good job of that tonight."

And so Friday night's championship game will be an all-county affair, with a much anticipated rematch with Avon Park.

The Lady Devils made a valiant comeback to take the first meeting by a 52-50 score before the Dragons won the second contest going away, 54-30.

"I knew early in the season that they had it in them. It was just a matter of them buying in," coach Coyne said. "They bought in and here we are. It will be a good game Friday and we feel good. We see we're a second-half team and even if we're down at half, it's almost like we've got them where we want them."

By reaching the title game, both teams are qualified for the state playoffs, with the winner getting a first-round home game while the losing team has to hit the road.