Brad Horn/Nevada Appeal
RENO " Sophie Glogovac couldn't get into the game. No matter what the Virginia City senior did Owyhee was right there, keeping her from the ball.
Then, like any champion, she rose up in the final two quarters to score 18 of her 22 points and push the Muckers ahead of Owyhee 58-35 in the Northern 1A regional championship game at North Valleys High School.
Glogovac, who spent nearly as much time with her back on the floor as the soles of her shoes did, hit 8-of-10 free throws in the final two quarters to help lead the Muckers to their first regional title in school history.
"Getting hit that hard, for me, just pumps me up," Glogovac said. "I just want to shove that back in their face, like, 'If you do that to us we're going to score two points.'"
While Glogovac struggled to get involved early on, the offense fed through her sister, Gigi. The younger Glogovac had 14 points at the half and finished with 22.
Virginia City held the lead for all but the first 4 minutes, 52 seconds as both teams struggled to find a rhythm. The Muckers found theirs first as they took a two-point lead at the 3:08 mark in the first quarter before pushing the lead to 15-4 thanks to a 9-0 run.
Owyhee closed the gap in the second quarter as it went on an 8-0 run of its own to get within 15-12, but the Braves never got any closer.
"The boys have done so well, they have so many state titles on the wall," Gigi said. "The girls have not been overlooked, but not really appreciated because we really haven't had that many great teams."
The boys have won 17 state titles, the most in Nevada history.
The Muckers held the lead, but had trouble distancing themselves against a physical Owyhee team. Their biggest lead of the game through three quarters was 13, but it was quickly dwindled to as little as seven because the Muckers couldn't gain control of the ball.
Virgnia City had 20 turnovers in the game with nine of those coming in a 9:21 period stretching between the first possession of the second half to the beginning of the fourth quarter.
"Owyhee's really athletic, they go after the basketball," Virginia City coach Todd Hess said. "We just looked to pass fake and pump fake everything."
After the stretch, Virginia City turned the ball over just one more time the rest of the way.
The Muckers put the game away on the strength of their foul shooting, which was key in their 54-42 win against Eureka on Friday to advance to the finals.
They shot 21-of-27 in the game with all but four of those attempts coming in the second half.
"I just told the team, I've had a couple of teams that have had a hard time shooting free throws," Hess said. "When we have a small lead and they have to start fouling, it's just the greatest feeling in the world because they've just shot well all year."