Johnson's record night lifts Carthage

As Sarah Johnson approaches the final weeks of her senior season, there's no doubt she has become one of the most dominant girls basketball players to ever compete in the Frontier League.

But, four years ago, who knew Johnson would score more points than any player in school history?

She did.

Johnson netted 29 points and hauled in 15 rebounds Wednesday night at Jefferson Community College, leading the Comets to a 57-41 victory over Immaculate Heart in the "A" Division championship game.

The talented forward tallied 14 points in the first half, when she passed Amy Wood's total of 1,195 points to take over the top spot on Carthage's all-time list.

Comets coach Randi Smith said Johnson knew it was coming.

"She set it as a goal when she was a freshman," said Smith, whose team has captured back-to-back playoff titles. "She told me point blank, 'Coach, I will have that record.'"

In the "B" Division title game, South Jefferson rode a balanced offensive attack and suffocating defense to a 39-10 victory over General Brown.

The Comets (12-5) and Spartans (17-0) will meet Saturday at JCC for the "A"/"B" championship game.

CARTHAGE 57, IHC 41

Johnson, last year's All-North MVP, says all the right things when she talks about the scoring prowess she's displayed over the past three seasons.

But she isn't kidding anybody. It's no secret that the Comets' success is predicated on her production down low.

"I know it's not all about the points I score," she said. "But I knew (the record) would be a good addition. My dream was always to just pass 1,000."

The Comets' precision shooting early is what created so many opportunities for Johnson to start scoring inside.

They nailed four 3-pointers during the first quarter, and got points from five different players, en route to a 20-9 advantage.

Johnson accounted for 23 of the Comets' final 37 points, but their goal of spreading out IHC's defenders was achieved by the time the second quarter began.

"We didn't want Sarah to beat us, so we left people open on the perimeter," IHC coach Jeff St. Croix said. "When they knocked down those threes, that strategy obviously hadn't worked very good."

Caitlin McGraw led the Cavaliers (9-8) with 17 points, and they pulled to within eight early in the second. Jillian Young added 13 points, but the Comets limited Adriana Spicer (15.7 ppg), IHC's top offensive threat, to just eight points — all in the fourth.

"The 1-2-2 trap we have is keeping us on our toes," Johnson said. "It's helping keep our intensity up and keep other teams off balance."

Sauter's eight rebounds and six points, along with accurate shooting, were the key factors in building a comfortable edge.

"Those were the single most impressive things in the game for us," Smith said. "Tonight we had a lot of people step up, and it forced their guards out, and opened things up for Sarah."

SOUTH JEFFERSON 39,

GENERAL BROWN 10

By the time Eleni Pitre netted the Lions' first basket of the game with 5:20 left in the second quarter, the undefeated Spartans (17-0) had already raced to an 18-0 advantage.

And South Jefferson, the state's top-ranked Class B squad, didn't allow many more looks at the hoop, as General Brown (10-7) managed just five field goals.

Coach Pat Bassett said the Spartans' main objective on defense was to limit Lindsay Hanson's chances, and they did so perfectly.

"We held the all-time leading scorer at General Brown to zero points," he said. "That says something because Lindsay is a heck of a player. Our girls just really get a rise out of shutting people down."

Maddy Wetterhahn had 13 points to lead eight South Jeff players who scored, while the next highest total was Leah Williams's six points.

The Lions' defensive efforts gave coach Mike Hulbert something to praise when the team hit the locker room after the game.

Sure, his team had lost by nearly 30, but it had also improved dramatically since surrendering 66 points the last time it faced the Spartans.

"We know every time we see them we're facing the best team in the state right now," Hulbert said. "We played pretty good on defense. If only we could have found some points on offense."

The win earned the Spartans a spot in the "A"/"B" final against the Comets for a second straight year. South Jeff beat Carthage by 41 points on Dec. 19, but Bassett said he reminded his players that the Comets string of nine victories is the league's longest behind their own of 17.

"They're playing with confidence, and Sarah is going to be a load to stop," Bassett said. "They're such a different team now."