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After taking a 35-33 lead midway through the third quarter, Lakota West fell behind and couldn’t keep up with Princeton in a 61-46 loss in a district semifinal matchup at Harrison Friday.

The Vikings led for most of contest until the third quarter. That was when sophomore Kelsey Mitchell picked up her third foul and was taken out of the game.

Lakota West responded by going on a 7-0 run, turning a 28-23 deficit into a 2-point advantage.

After the run, Mitchell checked back in the game and led Princeton on a 10-2 run. Lakota West managed to cut the lead to 5, but failed to get the score any closer.

Mitchell, who is ranked the No. 1 overall player in the nation in the recruiting class of 2014 by ESPN, finished with 19 points.

• Looking back – before the season: Lakota West girls’ basketball preview

The loss ends the season for the Firebirds, who rebounded from their first losing season in 10 years with a 14-9 overall record. Lakota West played especially well late in the season, winning eight of its last 10 games heading into the Princeton loss.

Princeton 61, Lakota West 46

Princeton (20-3) – C. Mitchell 1 0 3, Roper 4 0 8, Ballew 1 4 6, K. Mitchell 4 11 19, Rucker 3 0 7, Chinn 1 1 3, Pogue 7 1 15. Totals 23 17 61.

Lakota West (14-9) – Zieverink 3 2 8, Reeves 4 0 9, Cannatelli 3 0 9, McNeal 4 3 11, Neihaus 2 0 5, Huxhold 1 0 2, Carter 1 0 2. Totals 23 5 46.

Halftime: Lakota West 33-31. 3-Pointers: P 2 (C. Mitchell, Rucker); L 5 (Cannatelli 3, Reeves, Neihaus).

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Tags: Tags: Kelsey Mitchell, Lakota West, Lakota West basketball, Lakota West sports, Princeton basketball

Behind a strong defensive effort, Lakota West stormed into Friday’s Division I sectional finals – defeating Western Hills by the score of 61-21 Tuesday.

Using a pressuring defense, the Firebirds (14-8 overall, 7-7 in the Greater Miami Conference) held Western Hills to 26.7 percent shooting and forced 33 turnovers.

The active defense led to five steals for Lauren Cannatelli as the 5-foot-7 freshman guard scored 11 points and dished out three assists.

Cannatelli’s backcourt partner, 5-foot-6 junior guard Emily Neihaus, was the only other Lakota West player in double figures with 10 points and three rebounds.

Meanwhile, Western Hills (11-8) forced 17 turnovers, with 5-foot-6 freshman guard Dan’Shae Hill picking up three steals to go with her team-high nine points and four rebounds.

Last Wednesday, Lakota West defeated Loveland by the score of 62-24 in its first postseason game. Like the win against Western Hills, the Firebirds’ defense played well – limiting Loveland to 19 percent shooting and forcing 29 turnovers.

Lakota West, the No. 8 seed in the Southwest District, will play No. 2 seed Princeton (19-3 overall, 13-1 in the GMC) at Harrison High School at 7 p.m. Friday. Earlier this season, Princeton defeated Lakota West by the score of 68-60. In that win, sophomore Kelsey Mitchell led Princeton with 33 points. Mitchell, who is ranked the No. 1 overall player in the class of 2014 by ESPN, is averaging 20.5 points per game.

Like the Firebirds, Princeton has had two convincing wins this postseason – defeating Woodward 83-16 last Wednesday and beating Northwest 70-12 Tuesday.

Lakota West (14-8) - Zieverink 3 3 9, Sh. Reeves 2 1 6, Cannatelli 4 1 11, McNeal 1 0 2, Neihaus 4 0 10, Huxhold 1 0 2, Adams 2 0 4, R. Mills 2 0 4, Tomasic 2 0 4, Su. Reeves 3 0 7, H. Mills 1 0 2. Totals 25 5 61.

Western Hills (11-8) - Abernathy 1 0 2, Johnson 0 2 2, Thomas 2 1 5, Hill 4 1 9, Davis 1 0 2, Chancellor 0 1 1. Totals 8 5 21.

Halftime: Lakota West 45-7. 3-pointers: L 6 (Cannatelli 2, Neihaus 2, Sh. Reeves, Su. Reeves).

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Tags: Tags: Dan'Shae Hill, Emily Neihaus, Kelsey Mitchell, Lakota West, Lakota West basketball, Lakota West sports, Lauren Cannatelli, Princeton basketball, Western Hills basketball

Lakota East lost its fifth straight game when it fell to Princeton by the score of 63-39 Friday. For the Vikings, it was their fourth straight victory.

Senior guard Deion Isham led Princeton with a game high 19 points and 5 steals. Junior DiJuan Scott added a career high 10 points for the Vikings off the bench.

Meanwhile, freshman Myo Baxter (10 points) and senior Ian Owens (11 points) led Lakota East.

In its next game, Lakota East will visit Fairfield (12-3 overall, 6-3 in the Greater Miami Conference) at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Princeton will also be in action at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday when it hosts Sycamore (6-9 overall, 2-7 in the GMC).

Princeton 63, Lakota East 39

Princeton (11-3, 6-3 in the GMC) – Scott 5 0 10, Tivis 3 1 7, Pritchett 1 2 4, McGill 3 0 6, Isham 8 2 19, McAvinchey 3 0 6, Jones 4 0 8, Lohmeier 1 0 3. Totals: 28 5 63.

Lakota East (5-10, 2-7 in the GMC) – Harpring 3 0 6, Keating 1 0 2, Owens 3 2 11, Brady 3 0 7, Lowry 1 0 2, Baxter 5 0 10, White 0 1 1. Totals: 16 3 39.

Halftime: Princeton 33-17. 3-pointers: P 2 (Isham, Lohmeier); L 4 (Owens 3, Brady)

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Tags: Tags: Deion Isham, DiJuan Scott, Ian Owens, Lakota East, Lakota East basketball, Lakota East Sports, Myo Baxter, Princeton basketball

Lakota West battled injuries and couldn’t finish off its comeback attempt against Princeton, falling by the score of 56-50 Friday.

The Firebirds had trailed Princeton 49-48 with 55 seconds to play. The Vikings, however, converted 5-of-6 free throws in the last minute to hold on to the win.

Senior De’Arius Young (6-foot-7, 280 pounds) led Princeton with 15 points and 7 rebounds.

Meanwhile, Lakota West senior Jackson Blue set a Lakota school district single game record with 8 blocks. According to WestFirebirds.com, the previous record was 7 set by Josh Chichester during the 2003-04 season.

The Firebirds also received strong performances by junior Monty Boykins (13 points, 11 rebounds), junior Ali Barnes (13 points) and sophomore Tyler Williams (11 points, 6 rebounds).

Due to injury, Lakota West took the court without senior forward Kayaune Ross. Furthermore, Barnes was injured during the game.

Next up for the Firebirds is a matchup against Dixie Heights (10-5 overall) in the Bluegrass-Buckeye Classic at the Bank of Kentucky Center (Northern Kentucky University) at 7:45 p.m. Saturday. Princeton, on the other hand, is not scheduled to play another game until next Friday when it will host Hamilton (3-8 overall, 1-5 in the GMC) at 7:30 p.m.

Princeton 56, Lakota West 50

Lakota West (7-4, 4-2 in the GMC) – Blue 1 2 5, Barnes 5 2 13, Stalker 1 0 2, Williams 3 4 11, Boykins 5 2 13, Thomas 0 2 2, Moo Young 1 0 2, Bengal 1 0 2.

Princeton (8-3, 3-3 in the GMC) – Jordan 2 5 9, Tivis 2 0 4, Isham 4 0 8, McAvinchey 2 1 5, Young 5 5 15, Pritchett 1 0 2, McGill 3 0 7, Watkins 1 0 2, Lowmeyer 1 2 4.

Halftime: Princeton 28-24. 3-pointers: L 4 (Barnes, Boykins, Blue, Williams); P 1 (McGill).

Posted in: Sports, Winter Sports |

Tags: Tags: Ali Barnes, De’Arius Young, Josh Chichester, Josh Chichester Louisville, Kayaune Ross, Lakota West, Lakota West basketball, Lakota West sports, Monty Boykins, Monty Boykins Lakota West, Princeton basketball, Tyler Williams, Tyler Williams Lakota West