Slow start dooms Virginia City girls in state semis

LAS VEGAS " Virginia City's girls would do just about anything to erase the first seven minutes of Friday's Class 1A state semifinal basketball game.

The Muckers simply couldn't stop sliding downhill against Lund.

And it cost the team a chance to play for a state title.

Virginia City missed its first seven shots and committed 10 turnovers, falling behind 12-0 on its way to a 46-43 loss at the Orleans Arena.

Virginia City (27-6) saw its 20-game winning streak snapped. Lund (20-3) will meet Pahranagat Valley today in the championship.

"We felt very loose coming in," said Virginia City coach Todd Hess. "I didn't anticipate that start, and I'm sure the girls didn't. We just had some big eyes out there."

Hess used two timeouts before Virginia City even scored as the Muckers had trouble solving Lund's aggressive defense.

"We came out strong," said Lund coach Shane Boren. "Our half-court man (defense) was extremely good."

Gigi Glogovac finally got Virginia City on the board with a jumper with 1 minute, 36 seconds left in the first quarter. It was the Muckers' only field goal in the first 9:32 of the game.

Yet, Virginia City, which trailed by as many as 16 points, fought back and gave itself a chance to win.

The Muckers clawed back to get within 40-36 on Megan Brandon's steal and transition layup with 3:36 to play.

A three-point play by Sophie Glogovac with 39.8 seconds remaining left the Muckers down only 44-43, but a pair of free throws by Lund's Keisha Stewart finished the scoring.

"We showed good heart coming back, but we just had difficulty closing," Hess said. "We came as hard as we could. It was just a couple seconds too late."

Early turnovers and missed field-goal attempts weren't the Muckers' only problems.

Virginia City made just 12 of 30 free-throw attempts after shooting 78 percent from the line this season.

"Nerves had to play a factor," Hess said.

Gigi Glogovac, a junior, led the Muckers with 15 points. Older sister Sophie had 11 points and 10 rebounds. Brandon added nine points and 12 steals as the Muckers forced 29 turnovers by Lund.

"We're disappointed right now, but once we gather ourselves, we'll see that we've done some things that no other girls team has done at Virginia City," Hess said.

"If somebody wanted to rob a building in Virginia City, this would be the weekend to do it, because I think most of the town was down here."

Stewart led the Mustangs with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Lyndsey Ivins added 10 points.