Bedford North Lawrence Wins Class 4A

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) - Fort Wayne South Side shut down a part of the Bedford North Lawrence attack but couldn't stop Alexa Bailey and Dominique McBryde, who led the Stars to the Class 4A Indiana state championship Saturday night.

Bailey and McBryde each scored 19 in a 54-51 victory that capped a perfect season for the Stars.

"Our job was to work on the three-headed monster," Archers coach Juanita Goodwell said. "We took one away, but we couldn't stop the other two."

Brittni Rizzi, who averages double-digit scoring for the Stars (28-0) was held to nine points. Jenna Allen, also a key scorer, was held scoreless.

To turn the tide in a back-and-forth game, McBryde tied the game at 43 with six minutes left on a 3-point play and Bailey added another three points right away with a steal, layup and free throw. Bedford North Lawrence never trailed again.

"We played from behind the whole game and that is a difficult thing to do," Stars coach Kurt Godlevske said. "The pressure was really a lot different than semi-state because of that. It almost made every possession so much more valuable."

Ariana Simmons had 21 points and 11 rebounds and Brittni Clopton and Lakyn Gulley each had nine for the Archers (24-4), in the finals for the first time.

Simmons' 3-pointer tied the game at 46 but the Archers could never get over the hump. After McBryde's basket and South Side's De'Joyah Johnson's free throws left the game tied at 48, the Stars went up for good.

"We knew we wanted it more," McBryde said. "We were the hungriest team, so we had to come out and take it from them."

But with just over a minute to play, Sammy Dillman hit a 3-pointer to put the Stars ahead 51-48.

A Stars' 8-0 run late in the first half giving them a 26-21 lead before the Archers closed the first half with two Simmons free throws.

The Stars lost in last year's regional, and their last regular-season loss was Dec. 30, 2011.

The Stars made their first trip to the state finals since 1992 where they finished runner-up.