ACS girls play, pray and prey their way to Class 3A state title

From the "We're ready for you all!" chant they recited during a pregame huddle to the loud "amen" that punctuated the end of their postgame locker room celebration the Lions of Anchorage Christian came ready to play, pray and prey Saturday.

The Lions, a team with no seniors on the roster and two freshmen and two sophomores in the starting lineup, used physical, aggressive defense to capture the Class 3A girls basketball championship with a 52-40 win over Sitka at the Alaska Airlines Center.

From 6-foot-1 sophomore Jordan Todd (12 authoritative rebounds and five points before fouling out early in the fourth quarter) to 5-foot sophomore Mary Kate Parks (10 points, 5 steals, 5 rebounds and perhaps one white lie about her height), the Lions were simply too much for the Wolves.

Fourth-seeded ACS (22-4) preyed on second-seeded Sitka (20-7) defensively, disrupting and frustrating the Wolves with 16 steals. On many occasions, the Lions flat-out stripped the ball out of the Sitka's hands.

"We do defense for an hour every day at practice, so it definitely worked out," Parks said. "When we were pressing them, you could tell they were getting flustered. You could see it in their eyes."

The game was halted for 25 minutes late in the second quarter when a man in the bleachers behind the ACS bench suffered a seizure. Walt Orzechowski, the father of ACS assistant coach Jon Orzechowski, was carried to the gym floor by spectators and placed near the ACS bench so medics could tend to him.

He was defibrillated, taken out of the gym on a stretcher and taken to the hospital, where he was in stable condition, said Jon Orzechowski, who went to hospital with his dad but returned for the end of the game.

[Photos from the 3A and 4A championship games]

Play stopped with 1:42 left in the half and the game tied 21-21. With a crowd gathered around Orzechowski, officials with the Alaska School Activities Association decided to send teams to the locker room for intermission. When they returned, they warmed up and finished the second quarter, which ended with the teams tied 23-23. After a two-minute break, the third quarter began.

"It was hard at first," Parks said of the delay and the knowledge that one of their fans was in trouble. "We prayed for him, and then we brought ourselves back up because we heard he was stabilized."

ASC took the lead for good, 32-29, on a 3-pointer by Jessie Davis three minutes into the second half. The Lions led 38-33 at the end of the third quarter and owned a 45-33 lead two minutes into the fourth quarter. They held Sitka scoreless for four minutes, a span that covered the end of the third quarter and the start of the fourth quarter.

Other than the game's early minutes, Sitka looked uncomfortable against ACS's press. The Wolves missed some easy shots in the second half as ACS took control and seldom got second-chance opportunities offensively.

Zoe Krupa, Sitka's leading scorer who averaged about 15 points per game this season, was held to eight points in her final high school game — two 3-pointers and two free throws. Tatum Bayne, a junior, led the Wolves with 13 points.

ACS and Sitka took different paths to the title game, with Sitka cruising past Valdez 78-22 and Nikiski 35-15 and ACS beating Galena 54-37 to earn a shot at defending champion and top-seeded Barrow in Friday's semifinals, a game the Lions won 53-50.

"Yesterday's game could've been the championship game," Dyson said.

The Lions got off to a slow start against Sitka, missing their first five shots as Sitka grabbed an 8-0 lead. ACS got back into the game with strong rebounding and a press that forced several turnovers.

"We just teach defense," Dyson said. "We told them, 'At state, (the officials are) gonna let you play a little more (than usual), so just push the limits."

Todd said the Lions worked harder on defense this year than in her freshman season.

"A lot more running, a lot more defensive drills to get where we are," she said. "We knew we were capable. We just had to get used to all the running we did at practice."

Todd was a force inside, her long arms creating havoc for Sitka. She fouled out with more than five minutes left in the game, but the Lions barely missed a beat, bringing in freshman Kelsey Smallwood, who proved tough and troublesome for the Wolves.

When Destiny Reimers, one of ACS's leading scorers throughout the season, fouled out with 2:33 left, the Lions turned to Davis, a reserve guard who scored seven of her game-high 18 points in the final quarter to help ACS expand its lead.

"I had faith in them," Todd said of players who came off the bench. "It didn't surprise me."

Barrow 45, Nikiski 34

Barrow, last year's champion, grabbed third place by pulling away from Nikiski in the second half for a 45-34 victory.

Milya Wright poured in 24 points and grabbed 12 points and five steals to lead the Whalers, who broke a 17-17 halftime tie by outscoring Nikiski 15-11 in the third quarter and 13-6 in the fourth quarter.

Barrow racked up 22 steals, six of them coming from Alaina Wolgemuth, and benefitted from 30 Nikiski turnovers.

Rylee Jackson's eight points and nine rebounds led Nikiski.

Bethel 36, Grace 35

Bethel claimed fourth place by eking out a one-point win over Grace Christian.

Courtney Williams and Katie Crow each supplied 13 points and four steals for the Warriors.

Grace Christian got a boost from Makenna Shamburger's 13 points and six rebounds and Annie VanderWeide's 12 points and seven rebounds.

ASAA March Madness all-tournament team

Courtney Williams, Bethel

Tatum Bayne, Sitka

Destiny Reimers, ACS

Milya Wright, Barrow

Makenna Shamburger, Grace

Mary Kate Parks, ACS

Zoe Krupa, Sitka

Jordan Todd, ACS

Katie Crow, Bethel

Rose Mongoyak, Barrow