LAKE OZARK, Mo. - Up by 16 points after three quarters Saturday afternoon, the Helias Lady Crusaders appeared to have things going their way.
But with their season on the line, the Rolla Bulldogs weren't going to give up In the opening round of the Class 4 District Tournament at School of the Osage. So the Lady Bulldogs figured to send the Lady Crusaders to the free-throw line early and often in the final eight minutes.
Helias was up to the challenge, hitting 12-of-13 from the line in the quarter on their way to a 51-39 win.
"we knew free throws were going to be important," Helias coach Alan Lepper said. "We had the right players going to the line and they did great."
Morgan Wieberg was 8-of-9 from the stripe in the quarter, while Ashley Rehagen was 4-of-4.
The 12-point final margin was a bit deceptive. Rolla struggled from the field in the first three quarters, going 7-of-27. But the shots started to fall in the fourth quarter as the Lady Bulldogs pulled to within 5 at 36-31 with just under three minutes to play.
But Rachel Schulte then found Wieberg streaking toward the basket on Helias' next possession. The senior hit the layup, was fouled, and converted the free throw to push the Lady Crusader lead back to eight.
"That was a big play," Lepper said. "It got the momentum back on our side."
Helias then used its strong performance at the line to seal the victory.
Wieberg led all scorers with 16 points Saturday.
Both teams had problems scoring early as Helias led 8-6 after one quarter.
"We had to get the nerves out," Lepper said.
The Lady Crusaders led by as man as six points in the second quarter and took a 17-13 lead into intermission.
Helias played one of its best quarters of them season in the third quarter. The Lady Crusaders opened the second half with an 11-0 run to take their first double-digit lead of the game at 28-17.
Rolla turned the ball over four times in the opening 1:15 of the quarter. The Lady Bulldogs had 10 total turnovers in the quarter and 31in the game.
"I thought if we went out and pressured them, it would cause them some problems,"Lepper said.
Helias was 6-of-10 from the field the quarter in its way to a 34-16 advantage.
"That was a really good quarter for us," Lepper said.
Ellie Rodgers finished with 11 points to lead fifth-seeded Rolla (8-16).
Lauren Alexander added 12 points for the Lady Crusaders.
Fourth-seeded Helias (10-16) will face top-seeded Eldon (19-5) in the district semifinals.
"We just have to play our game," Lepper said. "If we do that, we've got a shot."
That game is scheduled for 5;30 p.m. Monday.