Lehi Sports
Skyridge girls fall short in season-ending playoff thriller
Megan Wallgren / Lehi Free Press
The No. 11 Skyridge High School girls basketball team saw its season come to an end on Thursday (Feb. 19) with a narrow 56–53 loss to the No. 6 Miners at Bingham High School during the second round of the 6A state tournament.
After earning a first-round bye, the Falcons were playing their initial game of the state playoffs. The loss dropped Skyridge’s final record to 14–10 and was the second defeat by the Miners this season, following Bingham’s 64–47 win in December.
The Miners will go on to play No. 3 Cedar Valley in the quarterfinals on Feb. 25.
The game opened evenly, with both teams scoring 12 points in the first quarter. Momentum shifted in the second period with a big Bingham run. The Miners outscored the Falcons 20–3. Skyridge’s lone basket in the quarter came on a three-pointer by sophomore standout guard Elena Chiara.
Coming out of halftime, the Falcons flipped the script in the third period, outscoring the Miners 18–6. Skyridge forced multiple Bingham turnovers by applying pressure in the backcourt and converted them into points to cut the Miner lead to just five.
The Falcons continued to battle in the fourth quarter, edging Bingham in scoring 20-18 but never quite making up the second-period point deficit.
A late Miner turnover gave Skyridge the chance to close the gap to three points off another bucket by Chiara. However, time expired for the Falcons as Bingham was able to secure the inbounds play and run out the clock to seal the win.
Chiara led all Skyridge scorers with 18 points, going a perfect 8-for-8 from the free-throw line. She added two three-pointers and two additional field goals in an outstanding performance.
Chiara finished the season ranked in the top 15 in Class 6A for points per game, field goals made, three-pointers made, assists per game and steals per game.
Senior forward Aiden Beck also scored in double-digits for the Falcons, knocking down two three-pointers and finishing with 10 points. Sophomore guard Hallee Sheffield added nine points and senior guard Lily Grant scored eight points.
“I was incredibly proud of the fight and heart our girls showed against Bingham,” said Coach Shaylee Nielsen. “We had a really rough second quarter and we had a huge third quarter but couldn’t get over the hump.
“Credit to Bingham, they hit shots when they needed them and never let us take over. This team has been resilient all year and they always played their hearts out. They have been enjoyable to coach,” she concluded.
