The Mariners beat Kodiak in the first round, Colony in the semi-finals, and played with the favored Wasilla Warriors through two overtimes in Homer's first championship game in more than a decade, before eventually losing 60-54.
"We never played in a championship game before," Homer senior point guard Bailey Lowney said. "The game was just so intense, but a lot of fun."
Lowney and the Mariners shot a sizzling 8-of-11 from the floor in the first quarter of Saturday's championship game to hold a 20-8 advantage on the Warriors going into the second quarter. Despite turning the ball over five times in the second quarter, Homer was able to stretch its lead to 32-16 with 1:41 left in the first half, following a 3-pointer from Kayla Creamer.
In the third period, however, Homer's three opening possessions resulted in three turnovers which allowed Wasilla to close within 34-25 with 4:21 left in the game. Homer committed seven turnovers in the period, but Wasilla was unable to close the gap completely as the Mariners' defense held the Warrior shooters to a dismal 1-of-12 from the floor. Wasilla went into the fourth quarter down 40-29 after Kaillee Pollack scored on a layup with only seven seconds left.
Homer was unable to hit a shot from the floor in the final period, though, and managed only four points as Wasilla knotted the game 44-44 at the end of regulation. Neither team was able to make a shot in the final 1:44 to send the game into its first overtime.
Wasilla's aggressive defense was a key component in getting back in the game as Homer committed 24 turnovers.
The first overtime was highlighted by crisp passing and clutch shots, including a one-handed pass from the foul line by Lowney to a streaking Allison Horazdovsky for a quick layup with 40 seconds left. The shot gave Homer a 49-47 lead and Lowney added a free throw with 11 seconds left, but Wasilla's Ashley Semler drained a 3-pointer with two seconds left for a 50-50 tie to send the game into its second overtime.
In the second overtime, Wasilla took an early lead with several free throws and behind the aggressive play of Megan Stearman they managed to hold a 57-53 advantage over Homer with 1:22 left. Homer was forced to foul to stop the clock in the final minute, but was unable to convert on the offensive side.
"The girls played their hearts out," Homer girls coach Meghan Murphy said, "It's tough to lose when you can isolate several plays or missed shots that keyed their (Wasilla) win."
Horazdovsky led all scorers with 18 points, including two three-pointers, while Lowney added 11 for Homer. Pollack and Creamer each netted nine for the Mariners before fouling out.
Stearman led Wasilla with 17 points and Hillarie Putnam added 16.
"We played an awesome game last night, too, so it may have prepared us for tonight," Murphy added.
In that semifinal game Friday, Homer and Colony played to a 21-21 tie through two quarters before the Mariners ran off a 14-4 run to start the third quarter.
Lowney scored seven of her game-high 15 in that stretch including her second three-pointer of the game, while the Mariner defense held the high-scoring Knights to just six points in each of the final two quarters.
The Mariners built a 37-27 lead with 5:04 remaining in the fourth, before buckets by Keley Joynt and Jamie Christensen cut it down to six.
Lowney extended the lead down the stretch from the free-throw line, however, hitting four of six in the final minute.
Homer's Reba Temple added a free throw and Colony's Joynt hit a bucket with 15 seconds remaining to make the final score 42-33.
In the Mariners first-round game against Kodiak, Homer built a 15-9 lead in the first quarter behind 11 points from Lowney.
Homer extended the lead to 26-12 in the second before Kodiak made a 10-0 run starting at the end of the second and ending at the beginning of the third.
Kayla Creamer ended the run with a three pointer at the five-minute mark of the third quarter and the Mariners built the lead back up to win the game 45-35.
The Mariners, the sixth seed, face third-seeded Service High in the first round of the eight-team state tournament at Sullivan Arena in Anchorage at 3:30 p.m. on March 31.
Murphy said the team should be ready.
"This tournament showed we can play with anybody," Murphy said.
Ben Stuart can be reached at ben.stuart@homernews.com.
Charles Pulliam writes for the Peninsula Clarion.
The Mariner girls advanced to next week's 4A state basketball tournament for the second time in as many years, and if their play in the Northern Lights Conference Tournament over the weekend is any indication, they don't plan on going quietly.
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