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--> --> Feb. 6: Grizzlies grab emotional win Ashland freshman point guard Alysse Carlson soars to the hoop for two of her 14 points past Kristina Bateman (right) and Jenna Bilden during Ashland's 57-51 win. Ashland Daily Tidings/DENISE BARATTA By Joe Zavala Ashland Daily Tidings Emotion got the best of Ashland. Luckily for the Grizzlies, Eagle Point didn't. The Grizz girls built a 38-26 halftime lead then watched all of it disintegrate before sweating out a 57-51 senior night win over the Eagles Tuesday at the Mountain Avenue gym. "It was a night that was full of a lot of emotion," Ashland junior post Marla Morin said. "It was (Abigail Gooch's) senior night, it was just our last night here and we know that even if we get fourth we're not going to get a home playoff game, so it was just like - we were doing senior gift stuff before the game so we weren't really able to focus. Senior night is always kind of like that for every team I think." The Southern Oregon Conference win brought Ashland one step closer to realizing its goal of making the league playoffs. The Grizzlies are now 6-6 in the SOC (10-12 overall), one game ahead of Grants Pass (5-7 SOC) for the fourth and final league playoff spot heading into their last two games - at Klamath Union (1-11 SOC) on Friday and at Roseburg (11-1) on Feb. 12. "We're so close and we all know it, and we want it so bad we can smell it," Morin added. If the Grizzlies and Lady Cavers finish tied for fourth, they'll play a one-game tie-breaker at either Grants Pass or Ashland, depending on the outcome of a coin flip. Eagle Point, fresh off a 69-31 loss to South Medford, fell to 2-10 in league play, and 5-16 overall. The Grizzlies used a 10-0 run at the end of the first half, including six straight points by freshman Alysse Carlson, to take a 12-point lead into the break. Stefani Talbott, who scored 17 to lead three Grizzlies in double figures, hit a 10-foot jumper and a 3-pointer back-to-back early in the third to give Ashland its biggest lead of the night, 43-29. The game looked well on its way to another Ashland home blowout at that point, but Eagle Point had other ideas. Suddenly, the Eagles started making shots, Morin picked up her fourth foul and with 1:34 left in the quarter, Eagle Point's Danelle Stanfield scored inside to bring her team within two, 43-41. Stanfield scored again early in the fourth, creating the first tie of the game at 45-all. That tying bucket seemed to wake the Grizzlies up because they ran off the next six points and 10 of the next 12 to seal the win. "I definitely think that we could have done better, but the intensity wasn't quite there," Gooch said. Talbott led Ashland's final surge, hitting a momentum-swinging trey with 5:04 left to put Ashland up 51-45. She also scored on a fastbreak layin off a beautiful pass by Carlson to give the Grizz a 55-47 lead at the 1:56 mark. Both buckets were followed by Eagle Point timeouts. The Eagles never seriously threatened again. "I wasn't surprised (it was close) because it was Eagle Point," Talbott said. "I mean, they're scrappy and they always have a way of pulling it off in all sports. We just kind of showed that we can't really underestimate anybody because when we came out at halftime we weren't going as hard as we should have, and it showed." Carlson scored 14 points, dished out four assists and had four steals for the Grizzlies, who played most of the game without their leading scorer. Morin picked up her fourth foul with 4:33 left in the third and spent a good portion of the game on the bench. The 6-foot center still rang up 13 points, including four in the fourth, and hauled in seven rebounds. Fellow junior post Julia Sobolik added five points and five rebounds. Dani Rouhier, a senior wing, led the Eagles with 18 points, including nine in the first quarter. The Grizzlies led 20-18 after an up-and-down first quarter which saw them take a 12-2 lead, only to watch Eagle Point run off 16 of the next 24 points. The Grizzlies continued their hot outside shooting against the scrappy Eagles, drilling five 3-pointers, three by Talbott and two by Carlson. Talbott hit two in the first quarter, with the second giving Ashland a 20-15 lead. "I'm just getting a lot more looks now that Marla's getting double teamed," Talbott said. "They're getting down low and so the posts are kicking it out, and we start moving the ball around really well and I just get more good looks." Two consecutive three-point plays by Carlson expanded Ashland's second-quarter lead from 28-26 to 34-26 in a span of 10 seconds. She stole a pass then scored and was fouled with 1:39 left, then after converting the free throw took Kate Morris' lead pass following another Eagle Point turnover in for two while being hacked. A Talbott jumper and two free throws by junior post Chloe Hansen completed Ashland's 10-point run. Balance got Eagle Point back in the game in the third, as five different players contributed points during a 12-0 Eagles' rally. The visitors needed just four and a half minutes to score those 12 points, then managed just 10 points in the last nine and a half minutes. "With Marla in foul trouble, we really needed to step it up and get a lead and win, which happened," Talbott said. "But I wish it would have been a little bit prettier." Ashland Boys Basketball At Eagle Point, the Grizzlies became the first Southern Oregon Conference team to lose to the Eagles, 51-35, on Tuesday. The loss dropped Ashland to 5-13 overall, 1-9 in league play while Eagle Point improved to 2-18 and 1-9. Andrew Tree led the Eagles with 13 points, seven steals and three assists, while Ashland got a team-high 15 points from Bryan Clevenger. Clevenger was the only Grizz player in double figures. Eagle Point shot 20-for-41 from the field while holding Ashland to 11-for-42 shooting. The Grizzlies return to the Mountain Avenue gym Friday against Klamath Union (5-5 SOC). Ashland Dance Teams The Ashland High dance and drill team placed second at the 11-team Churchill meet on Saturday, capturing its second top-four performance of the season. The 12-member Grizz squad, led by team captain Meagan Armstrong, performed in a three-team division at the meet. The Grizzlies also took fourth at the Thurston meet earlier this season. Email your... 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