Emma Herpin wasn’t on the floor at the end of Faith Lutheran’s victory Thursday night after fouling out with 1:09 to go in overtime.
But without the senior’s performance, the Crusaders wouldn’t have still been on the court, much less celebrating a win.
Herpin hit a 3-pointer to force overtime, then scored the first four points of the extra period to lead Faith Lutheran to a 61-58 road win over Shadow Ridge in the Class 5A girls state basketball quarterfinals.
“I just knew I had to make the shot and I knew how to make a play out of this to be able to give my team overtime,” Herpin said of her big 3-pointer.
The Crusaders (15-11) trailed 53-50 late in the fourth quarter when they called a play to get Herpin a 3-point attempt. She came off a screen and got the ball on the left wing with a defender on her hip. Herpin took one dribble toward the lane to shake the defender, then stepped back behind the 3-point line and drained a shot that tied the game with nine seconds left in regulation. The Crusaders called timeout with 7.7 seconds left to set up their defense, and Shadow Ridge (16-5) didn’t get off a shot before the buzzer.
“She missed a bunch, too, first, but it was good to see her recover for her team,” Faith Lutheran coach Jennifer Karner said. “I knew she was going to take that big shot, and I was calling that timeout about two minutes before she shot it. She’s our big player, we know that. She’s our senior and we want to put the ball in her hands and she stepped up for us and it’s awesome.”
Herpin had six points in the first quarter, but was scoreless in the second and third quarters before getting going late in the game. She scored 10 points in the fourth quarter and finished with 20 points, nine rebounds, five assists, four blocked shots and two steals.
She also missed some close-range attempts late that could have helped speed up Faith Lutheran’s comeback. Still, she made big plays to keep her team’s season alive.
“I was a little down at first, but then I realized that it’s not about me,” Herpin said. “It’s about the game. It’s about my team. It’s about what I needed to do to help my team. So I just got over it and continued (to) the next play.”
Herpin’s two driving layups to start overtime gave the Crusaders the lead, and they pushed it to 58-53 on a free throw by Kloe Abdalla with 1:24 to go. Herpin fouled out 15 seconds later, and both teams struggled from the line down the stretch. But Faith Lutheran’s Caylyn Young hit three of her four foul shots in the final 1:07 to help seal the win.
Young had nine points, five rebounds, five assists and three steals, while Abdalla came off the bench to hit three 3-pointers and score 12 points. Khloe Pitts had 10 points and six rebounds for the Crusaders, who play top-seeded Centennial in the semifinals Wednesday at Clark.
Jaslyn Jefferson had 24 points and 15 rebounds to lead Shadow Ridge. Her basket gave the Mustangs a 52-44 lead with 2:57 to go in the fourth quarter before Faith Lutheran rallied.
Avery Freeman added 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Alexa Madsen grabbed 13 rebounds for Shadow Ridge, which had a 55-40 advantage on the boards.
“Every day is another step, and we just want to get as far as we can and keep going and playing,” Karner said. “We’ve got a tough battle in the next round, and that’s the way basketball goes. So we’re going to battle and be relentless in that one, too.”
