By Matt Smith
The shots weren’t falling for Jaina Preuhs and Sun Valley in the fourth quarter Saturday afternoon.
Hoping to celebrate senior day with their ninth win of the season, the Vanguards were in a rut for most of the second half. They had allowed a double-digit halftime lead against nearby Christian Academy (Brookhaven) to dissipate. The Vanguards’ offense had gone the way of the outside temperatures: cold and miserable.
However, all the Vanguards needed was one timely basket. Preuhs stepped up and delivered..
The Vanguards trailed by three points with 30 seconds to go when senior guard Alicia Whitfield came up with a steal near midcourt and passed to Preuhs, a junior, who had already made three 3-pointers. Her fourth triple evened the score and forced overtime.
In the extra period, the Vanguards’ Emily Kauffeld made a steal under the basket and threw a strong pass to Whitfield in transition. Whitfield then dished off to forward Melana Timmes, who streaked in for a lay up to put the Vanguards in front for good.
Sun Valley held on for a 37-33 victory over TCA. It has won four consecutive games to pull within one game of the .500 mark.
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