Virgin Valley girls, boys win titles, go on to state

Rachel Morris has waited patiently for the time she spends working on free throws in practice to pay off in games.

On Saturday, it helped the junior center send Virgin Valley's girls basketball team to the Class 3A state tournament.

Morris hit 3 of 4 free throws in the final 1:09 to help the Bulldogs rally for a 40-36 win over Boulder City in the 3A Southern League title game at Desert Oasis.

"I was thinking it's not going to be like practice where I don't make my free throws," said Morris, who entered the game shooting 38-for-85 (44.7 percent) from the foul line. "Like my grandpa taught me since I was little, free throws, free throws. That's what I work on."

Virgin Valley (11-14) claimed Southern Nevada's lone spot in the 3A state tournament. The Bulldogs will play Northern Region runner-up Lowry in a semifinal Friday at Damonte Ranch High in Reno.

Morris led the Bulldogs with 13 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks.

Virgin Valley trailed 19-8 early in the second quarter, but began clawing back. The Bulldogs finally took their first lead since 2-0 when a free throw by Morris gave them a 31-30 edge with 2:43 left.

"We worked our butts off and got back into it," said Morris, who made 9 of 16 free throws. "We knew if this was going to be our last game, we were going to go all out."

Freshman point guard Nikki Arquette added 10 points for Virgin Valley, which is gunning for its first state title since taking the 2A crown in 1993.

"This is probably one of the biggest moments for these kids because we only have one starter from last year (Morris) who has any varsity experience," Bulldogs coach Chimane Creer said.

Morris' free throw with 1:09 left tied the game at 36-all. Madison Bowler followed with another free throw, giving the Bulldogs the lead, after a technical foul had been assessed to Boulder City.

Morris hit two free throws 20 seconds later as the Bulldogs scored the game's final five points from the line.

Jessi Forrester nailed five 3-pointers on her way to 16 points to lead Boulder City (11-10).

BOYS

■ Virgin Valley 70, Moapa Valley 61 -- Cameron Jensen scored 14 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter to help the Bulldogs capture the Class 3A Southern League title and Southern Nevada's lone berth in the state semifinals.

Virgin Valley brought a 46-37 lead into the fourth quarter, but Moapa closed to within 48-46 on a basket by James Frehner with 5:54 to play.

Jensen scored the Bulldogs' next eight points, including a deep 3-pointer, and Virgin Valley made 16 of 22 free throws in the fourth quarter.

Austin Cloes added 15 points, Jason Wittwer 12 and Zach Horlacher 10 for Virgin Valley.

Hayden Cooper led Moapa with 14 points. Matt Vallet and Frehner each scored 12.