South Iron's State Title Quest Continues with Win Over Naylor

(Van Buren, Mo.) The #3 South Iron Lady Panthers beat the Naylor Lady Eagles in overtime today in the Class 1 quarterfinals 46-45 heard on J-98. With the win the Lady Panthers move on to the semifinals for just the second time in program history.

The first half was back and forth the whole time with both team’s grabbing a share of the lead multiple times. However, Michaela Ayers was able to pump in 14 first half points and give the Lady Panthers the lead going into the locker room.

Both team’s went cold from the field in the third quarter which made for an even more tightly contested fourth quarter. South Iron found themselves down by four with 36 seconds to play when their senior standout, Michaela Ayers, took over.

With South Iron still down by a bucket and less than 20 seconds to play in regulation, Ayers was able to do it again.

South Iron got a stop and headed to overtime tied at 42. In the overtime period, South Iron struck first, but Naylor was able to take a one point lead with less than a minute to play. This time, the younger Ayers’ stepped into the spotlight as Madison got to the free throw line with the game on the line.

Michaela Ayers finished with a game-high 25 points and was our Applebee’s of Farmington Player of the Game.

After the game South Iron’s head coach Lawrence Graves says he couldn’t be happier.

With the win South Iron improves to 25-4 and will travel to Springfield, Missouri where they will take on Platte Valley next Thursday at 3:30. Naylor ends their season with a 19-10 record. We will have the coverage of the Class 1 semifinals on J-98 at 3:15.

Full Post Game Interview with Head Coach Lawrence Graves: