Hashley, Habel hold off Helena
Flathead's 17-0 4th quarter run fuels win
Heading into her team's huddle at the end of the third quarter, Flathead senior Holli Hashley knew her career could be over in only eight minutes.
The entire Bravettes team had come out flat in Saturday's playoff game against Helena and stayed that way, managing only 23 points in the first three quarters. They faced a 29-23 deficit heading into the final frame.
Hashley may have started the game slow, scoring only eight points in the first 24 minutes, but had no intention of going out that way.
She opened the fourth with a layup, cutting Helena's lead to 29-25. Little did she know it would be the start of a 17-0 Flathead run that saw the team turn a six-point deficit into a 40-29 lead.
Hashley scored 10 of her game-high 18 points in the final quarter as the Bravettes downed the Bengals 47-34, earning a berth in the Class AA state tournament in the process.
"The whole game, I knew it could be my last," Hashley said. "Coach Latimer told us in the huddle not to panic, and he was right.
"I did not want to lose; we all just went for it."
Hashley wasn't alone in putting up fourth-quarter heroics. Sophomore Kendal Habel scored seven of her 12 points in the period, and helped close out the mammoth run with a steal and assist to Hashley. The Bravettes outscored Helena 24-5 in the final quarter.
"Kendal really stepped up today," Hashley said. "She didn't play [Helena] the first time, so she was kind of our secret weapon."
The Bengals had no answer for Habel's intensity, as the part-time JV player was all over the court defensively. She finished the game with four steals.
"If you watch [Helena] enough, you know how to read their passes," Habel said. "And I knew we had to have those steals, because we wanted to win it for Holli."
Habel's playing time has increased throughout the season, and she played most of Saturday's game. She had five points in the third, helping keep the Bravettes in the game.
"Kendal really gave us a spark tonight," Flathead coach Dennis Latimer said. "We've brought her along slowly, but she's really athletic.
"And she's the kind of girl you can sic on an opposing point guard and have her cause havoc."
Meghan O'Connell added eight points for Flathead (14-7), and Chaeney Latimer finished with six on a pair of 3-pointers.
Lindsey Aasheim's nine points paces Helena High (7-14).
The Bravettes, the West's No. 3 seed, open the state tournament at Butte Civic Center on Thursday when they take on East No. 2 seed Bozeman High at 9 a.m.
BRAVETTES 47, BENGALS 34
Helena High 9 4 16 5 - 34
Flathead 6 7 10 24 - 47
Helena High (7-14)
Aimee Morrison 0 3-4 3, Lindsey Aasheim 3 2-2 9, Heather Grotbo 1 0-0 2, Sara Noonan 1 0-0 2, Meagan Connolly 3 0-2 6, Alyssa Bossler 2 1-3 5, Ann Bugni 2 0-0 4, Alexandra May-Fraser 1 0-0 3. Totals: 13 6-11 34.
Flathead (16-5)
Christina Zorn 0 1-4 1, Chaeney Latimer 2 0-0 6, Kendal Habel 3 6-9 12, Lindsay Ingram 0 0-1 0, Holli Hashley 6 6-7 18, Meghan O'Connell 2 3-4 8, Chelsea Vaudt 1 0-0 2. Totals: 14 16-25 47.
3-point goals: Aasheim, May-Fraser; Latimer (2), O'Connell. Team fouls: Helena High 23, Flathead 13. Fouled out: May-Fraser.