High school girls basketball: Westlake comes from behind late to beat Cedar Valley

It wasn’t easy, but Westlake eventually was able to claw its way past a strong and fierce Cedar Valley side Thursday, walking away victorious in a close back and forth battle, 53-49.

Avery Thompson scored a game-high 16 points for Westlake, including two 3-pointers, while Isley Sauvao and Keira Hester chipped in 13 points each, with Hester draining three 3-pointers of her own.

For a big chunk of the first half, Westlake struggled to get any consistency going offensively due to its inability to solve Cedar Valley’s zone defense.

“More than anything we’re a great 3-point shooting team and we’re used to being able to get open shots in a zone. They did such a great job of taking that away from us,” said Westlake head coach Charlotte Macfarlane.

“Finding a different way to attack at halftime was a challenge for us, but I thought the team really bought into it really well. Being able to adjust like that helped us relax a little bit.”

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After trailing for most of the game, Westlake used the time between the third and fourth quarters to chat about how it needed to get back to playing simple, team-focused Westlake basketball. It’s safe to say that the message was well received.

“Between the third and fourth quarters we just talked about how we needed to reconnect as a team,” Macfarlane said. “There were times in the third quarter where I feel like we started to play together as a team and not as individuals.

“The ability for them to come out and remember that they’re playing for each other was just remarkable.”

Westlake came out in the fourth quarter, determined to turn things around. The Thunder were able to hold Cedar Valley scoreless for a big chunk of the final quarter, allowing them to seize the momentum and take control.

With just over five minutes left to play, Hester drilled a clutch 3-pointer to give her team the lead, a lead it would not surrender.

Cedar Valley continued to put the pressure on and made three 3-pointers in the final minute to make things uncomfortable for Westlake, but it was not enough as the Thunder left with the win.

“Cedar Valley comes and competes and are always ready for big moments and big games,” Macfarlane said. “They splashed three 3s in the final minute of the game and that’s credit to them and their players. I told my kids that gamers game and that’s OK. Credit to them.”