Masterson's strong second-quarter effort helped Lincoln to open up a close game with the Lady Rebels. Lincoln (3-2, 1-0 45th District) connected on 10 of 19 shot attempts in the period with Masterson going 5-for-8 for half of her 20 points while claiming six boards.
"It was kind of Keonia's coming out party tonight,� said Story. "We've been working with her moves in practice and she really just let it all go tonight. She made some nice moves and had an excellent game.�
While Story takes credit for helping Masterson with her movement toward the basket, he says some moves she does on her own, in particular, a drive to the paint punctuated by a 180 degree spin move and shot for two points late in the second as Lincoln opened up a double-digit lead.
"I can't take credit for that one. She did that all on her own. But that was some move wasn't it?� said Story.
Henderson also keyed the second-quarter offense knocking down eight of her 17 points and getting five rebounds. Shakelia Miller added a field goal in the quarter as Lincoln took a 40-30 halftime lead.
Lincoln was up 45-32 two minutes into the second half with Shawna Noakes opening the third with a layup, Megan Pitts following with a bucket and Noakes going to the line for a foul shot.
An 8-2 run by the Lady Rebels after the Noakes free throw trimmed the Lady Pat lead to single digits. Sarah McCann, who led Boyle with 14 points, scored back-to-back goals from the paint to make it a nine-point ballgame. Tori Alcorn picked up another point at the foul line before McCann canned a three-pointer to make it 47-40.
Emily Bratcher, a senior reserve guard, put the brakes on the Boyle run with 3:30 to go when she drained a three-pointer. Bratcher, who finished with 10 points, then added a basket inside to put the Lincoln lead back to 12, 52-40.
Bratcher's 10 along with Masterson's 20 and Henderson's 17 added up to a big night for the Lincoln subs. The Lady Patriot bench would account for 53 of Lincoln's total points in the win.
"That's incredible. Our bench scored 53 points,� said Story. "Keonia and Keira played well and Emily Bratcher came in and hit a big 3 there when they cut the lead down. Things could have gotten tight if she hadn't made that shot.�
"Our bench really gave us a big lift tonight,� he said. "The entire bench came through for us. They've played a big part in all of our games but tonight they just really did well. I can't say enough about how well they played.�
Lincoln led 57-47 after three and showed a 65-50 lead with 5:47 on the clock. Kendra Ross and Sarah Hall answered for Boyle with a trey apiece and Allie Hafley collected two foul shots to cut the Lady Pat lead to 67-58 with 4:06 to go.
Boyle would get no closer. The Lady Patriots went 7-for-8 from the foul line down the stretch and got buckets from Pitts and Savannah Lane to seal the win.
Masterson sank three foul shots in the closing minutes and Miller and Bratcher had two apiece.
"This is a good win, a big district win,� said Story. "It's all about the postseason and seeding. And to have a good seed you've got to beat the other district teams. Of course, we want to win the other games but these are the ones that really count toward the postseason.�
Story was especially pleased to get his first district win against Boyle (2-1, 0-1 district).
"In the 20 some years of us going against Boyle, it's always a tough game,� he said. "I can remember as an assistant under John (Kolasa), the battles we had with Boyle, I'll never forget the five overtimes down at Casey.�
"You always know - that against Boyle - it's never going to be easy. They make it tough every time,� Story said.
Lincoln shot 40 percent in the game going 30-for-75 from the field while Boyle was at 36 percent on 20-for-55 shooting. At the line, the two teams were evenly matched with Lincoln at 17-for-24 and Boyle at 17-for-27.
Offensive rebounding took care of some of Lincoln's missed shots with 21 offensive boards claimed by the Lady Pats.
"That's something we want to see,� said Story. "Those 21 offensive rebounds mean 21 more opportunities, chances for a basket and you'll finish a lot of those. If we can crash the offensive boards like that in every game, it will make things a whole lot easier.�
