EDMOND — After the first half, MacArthur appeared to be headed to a memorable win and a state tournament berth.
Then the second half happened.
The No. 7 Lady Highlanders (16-8) held a 17-point lead at halftime, but Woodward showed exactly why it is No. 2 team in Class 5A, forging a furious rally with some stellar shooting to hand Mac at 64-60 loss in the 5A Area championship game at Edmond North on Thursday night.
The good news, Mac returns to action at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday against Piedmont at Norman North for a second chance to advance to the state tournament. The Lady Highlanders beat the Wildcats twice by a total of 11 points earlier this season, with the latest matchup going to overtime.
Piedmont defeated Carl Albert, 40-39, on a last-second 3-pointer to keep its season alive on Thursday night.
MacArthur coach David Vann said a multitude of things led to his team’s crushing defeat.
“The refs got in our head, we fell apart and couldn’t run the offense,” Vann said. “I blame myself — it’s my fault we lost. I tried to take timeouts to talk to them, but we were frustrated and couldn’t get out and cover. I didn’t do a great job, and maybe I didn’t I didn’t have the right talk to get them motivated to get back out there in the second half.
“We used everything in our repertoire in the first half and forgot there were still two quarters left.”
The Boomers (22-4) outscored the Lady Highlanders 43-22 in the second half, hitting six of their seven 3-pointers in the process, five of which came in the fourth quarter.
Perhaps the turning point of the game came before the final eight minutes, though.
With only a few seconds remaining in the third quarter and Mac leading by 13, Woodward looked to its key playmaker, Kaylee Hurst. As Hurst took a desperation 3 from the right wing, freshman McKenzie Washington fouled her from behind, sending Hurst to the free-throw line.
Hurst hit all three, cutting the score to 48-38 going into the fourth.
Despite the Boomers hitting three-straight 3-balls to begin the quarter, Mac didn’t give in to the pressure, pushing the advantage back to 10 points at 57-47 after Sydney Gunter responded with a 3 of her own with 5:15 remaining.
That is when Woodward sent their secret weapons, Maison Mosely and Caylee Kline, onto the court.
The pair was insignificant through the first three quarters, scoring no points for the Boomers. The fourth was a different story, however.
The seniors took over, combining for 15 points in the final five minutes. Mosely hit two shots and five free throws down the stretch, while Kline sealed the victory with two 3-pointers in the closing minutes.
Kline hit one of her 3-pointers with 3:20 left to move Woodward to within one at 59-58, and after Mac split a pair of free throws, Mosely hit two free throws to even things at 60 with 1:35 to play.
The Boomers went on to take a lead they wouldn’t relinquish on their next possession.
Washington had a chance to tie the game with 38.9 seconds to go, but an untimely charging foul derailed any chance of a Mac comeback, and Woodward closed the game with free throws.
In all, the Lady Highlanders were outscored 17-3 in the final five minutes of the contest and were held without a field goal for the final three minutes.
Gunter led Mac with 25 points and eight rebounds, hitting all three of the team’s 3-balls. Meanwhile, Tamera Thomas added 11 points, five rebounds and five assists. Washington scored 11 points of her own as well.
Although quiet in the point category, Victoria Lewis pulled down eight rebounds for the Lady Highlanders.
Hurst finished with 23 points to lead Woodward, and Brennley Cloyd had 18.
Vann said he knows his players are hurting and frustrated after such a devastating loss, but he doesn’t want this game to beat them twice and end their season before the state tournament.
“We can’t let this settle in, because if we do, we’ll be done,” Vann said. “We let one slip. It got away from us before the fourth quarter started. I’m going to take a look at the tape because that stuff can happen on Saturday, so I have to figure it out.”