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FULTON – The Fulton girls basketball team might associate Darcy Kepner slashing through the lane soon with nightmares.
Fulton coach Mike Menchaca knew his team didn’t match up well with the Storm’s size, but he didn’t figure it would be the 5-foot-5 Kepner that would end his team’s season.
Behind Kepner’s dominant effort offensively and on the glass, the second-seeded Storm hung on to a 53-43 win over No. 3 Fulton in a semifinal game at the Class 2A Fulton Regional.
“It’s weird,” Menchaca said. “Bureau Valley is the one team that can match up with us perfectly. They have that size and length, and it hurts when the one handling the ball for us is 5-foot-2.
“And Kepner killed us. She’s a real good player. She knows how to work around the rim and finish.”
Kepner finished with a team-high 15 points, and was able to split the Fulton defense for open looks. She shot a deadly 6-for-9 from the field and drew six fouls. The junior guard had nine of her 15 points in the second half, as well as all seven of her rebounds, as she took over once the Steamers started to crawl back.
“Darcy is competitive, she really came alive when the pressure was on down the stretch. She really has a good understanding of the game and is able to put herself in a position to get steals on defense and get the ball to the basket,” Storm coach Tiffany Gonigam said.
Fulton (13-15) had an issue with turnovers early, committing nine in the first quarter, and finishing with 17. Bureau Valley also had trouble hanging on to the ball, committing 22 turnovers.
The Steamers kept the score close throughout the game behind Chelsea Lesniewski’s game-high 18 points. Lesniewski dominated the paint and handled the Storm’s taller post players by gaining position and using leverage to create shots.
“She’s so good at using her body to control her spot,” Menchaca said. “She can post up, and she knows how to move around down there. But eventually, like with Kennedy, we just couldn’t get her the ball.”
The Fulton offense dried up after Bureau Valley (15-12) clamped down on Leitzen and shut down her slick passing to Lesniewski.
Leitzen fouled out late in the fourth quarter after trying to defend the Storm’s constant rim attack. But even without their point guard, the Steamers had some life, and it was named Faith Kennedy.
Kennedy scored each of her 12 points in the fourth quarter, as she hit four 3-pointers. She was most effective when she was able to catch and shoot, and she rarely missed. The sophomore guard ranged from baseline to baseline and finished 4-for-6 from behind the arc.
Her shooting helped Fulton climb back into the game, as her final 3 came with a little more than 2 minutes remaining and cut the deficit to 47-43, but Fulton couldn’t find a way to get her the ball or find the bottom of the basket again.
“We talked about making adjustments, and after she kept hitting those open 3s, she went to the top of our list,” Gonigam said. “We just had to tighten our defense, and the girls never let up.”
• Notes: The Storm will face No. 5 seed Newman (8-17) in Thursday's championship at 7 p.m. Newman knocked off No. 1 seed Morrison 35-34. BV will be making its first regional finals appearance since 2010 when it beat Mendota at Princeton.
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