Nature Coast returns to the top

EUSTIS --

Nature Coast began this season on a mission to restore its former glory, to get back to winning district championships.

On Saturday night at Eustis High, the Lady Sharks did just that, topping Tavares in the Class 5A, District 7 Tournament title game, 50-35.

"It's very satisfying and I'll probably tell the girls to enjoy this throughout the weekend," Nature Coast Head Coach Emily Gore said.

"But on Monday we go back to work. We do have one more goal, to go to the Sweet 16, and we've put ourselves in a good position to do that."

During the Lady Sharks first six seasons of existence they claimed four district crowns, including three in a row from 2006-09.

But they failed to even make the title game in 2009-10, then suffered through an 8-14 campaign last season.

"It means so much," senior center Lyndsey Pospisil said. "It's our senior year. We're all real excited to pull out a win."

Nature Coast (21-3) also clinched a home regional quarterfinal on Thursday. It'll host 5A-8 runner-up Pasco at 7 p.m.

* * * * *

Against Tavares (17-6), the final score was extremely misleading. A matchup of the tournament's top seeds was a three-point affair late in the third quarter.

No. 1 Nature Coast led from the outset, receiving eight points and seven rebounds from Courtney Crawford in the opening period to take a 13-4 advantage.

Yet the second-seeded Lady Bulldogs wouldn't go away.

A physical contest that featured a combined 39 fouls and 51 free throws, not to mention a bevy of turnovers, was not an offensive clinic.

The Lady Sharks were held to just 15 points over the second and third quarters, allowing Tavares to creep as close as 25-22 in the third.

"I think you've got to give Tavares a lot of credit, especially in the second quarter and third quarter," Gore said. "I felt like that third quarter was never going to end, but I knew if we got to the fourth we'd settle down and be OK.

"… Just getting to the end of that third quarter and getting over to the bench (helped). I said 'Listen, we need to rely on our defense, rebound and make them miss shots.'"

In the final period Nature Coast would outscore the Lady Bulldogs 22-13. Je'Nay Yore scored eight of her 10 points in the quarter.

Crawford, a senior forward who played with Hernando last season, admittedly didn't even have the energy to muster any excitement afterward.

"Courtney Crawford did a phenomenal job," Gore said. "I thought we would be carrying her off at the end. I don't think she has anything left."

She scored a game-high 16 points and hauled in 19 rebounds to go along with five steals and four assists.

"I'm just very relieved because I knew we could do this," Crawford said. "It was very physical. It was hard going for rebounds, because they're tall and they can jump a little bit. They're an aggressive team."

Though Tavares limited Pospisil to just nine points, she still did her part defensively and on the boards, collecting 13 rebounds and four blocks.

Another senior, point guard Carcy Bossey, chipped in seven points, six assists, six rebounds and three steals.

No one from the Lady Bulldogs scored in double figures. Kristin Williams paced the team with nine points, seven rebounds and two blocks.

Nature Coast 50, Tavares 35

Qtr. Scoring	1	2	3	4
TAV	4	9	9	13	—	35
NCT	13	9	6	22	—	50

Tavares (35): Colston 2 4-6 8, Williams 4 1-6 9, Hardwick 0 2-3 2, Leland 2 0-0 4, Evans 0 0-2 0, Dailey 2 1-4 5, Hutto 2 0-0 4, Horsley 0 2-2 2, Guenther 0 1-2 1, Matos 0, Hennington 0. Totals 12 11-25 35.

Nature Coast (50): Holmes 3 0-0 6, Crawford 6 4-10 16, Pospisil 4 1-2 9, Bossey 0 7-10 7, Je'Nay Yore 4 2-4 10, Je'Nel Yore 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 14-26 50.

Three-point field goals: TAV 0; NCT 0.

Total fouls: TAV 20; NCT 19.

Technical fouls: none.

Fouled out: none.

Records: Tavares (17-6), Nature Coast (21-3).

5A-7 Tournament

at Eustis High

01-31

Game 1 – No. 3 Crystal River vs. No. 6 Dunnellon

Crystal River 48, Dunnellon 42

Game 2 – No. 4 Eustis vs. No. 5 Hernando

Eustis 44, Hernando 40