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Grant helps South cruise by North Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli South Medford�s Whitney Grant, left, and North Medford�s Kailey Bostwick scramble for a loose ball in Friday�s game. The senior guard is honored before the game and shines in Panther win By TED BURNHAM Southern Oregon Conference girls basketball fans were treated to a great show by one of the region�s best senior point guards Friday night, but not before a North Medford freshman nearly stole the show. Shining in her final regular-season home game, South�s Whitney Grant scored 19 points to lead the Panthers to a 52-36 win over the Black Tornado at South Medford High School. Grant, who has more assists and steals than any Panther girl in school history, was feted before the game. As the only senior on the young squad, Grant will lead the Panthers (14-8 overall, 10-3 SOC) into the Class 4A state playoffs. At 2-11 in the SOC and 5-17 overall, North is not going to the playoffs, but Kailey Bostwick looks to be a bright light for North in future seasons. Bostwick broke out Friday to score 15 points, including three 3-pointers, to lead the Black Tornado. The victory keeps South at third behind undefeated Crater in the SOC. Grant said her final season will be one to remember. "The season has flown by," she said. "But we have jelled as a team. We became a better team than anyone thought we would be." South head coach Andrea Jaime said Grant has been a "great leader." "She works very hard and makes things happen," Jaime said. "She leads by example. She always finds a positive way to get the team headed in the right direction." Junior post Beth Mueller poured in 11 points to help South and freshman guard Katie Singler added 10. Junior post Kirsten Gillingham did not score but grabbed 13 rebounds for the Panthers. North junior Kirsten Mellbye scored seven points and had eight rebounds and Anna Lilly added five points for the Black Tornado. South won the tip-off, but North struck first with a Bostwick basket. Singler, Grant, Mueller and junior post Jennifer Brennan all scored to help South jump out to a 12-5 lead five minutes into the game. Grant scored five in the first quarter to help South lead, 18-10, going into the second quarter. She added another six points before halftime to put South up, 27-20, at the break. Grant hit two more buckets and the Panther defense held North scoreless for the first 5 minutes, 20 seconds of the second half to lead, 33-20, before Michelle Westerman hit a free throw to score North�s first point of the second half. Jaime said defense won the game for South once again. "We are really pleased with our defensive effort," she said. "We held them, except for Kailey Bostwick. She shot the lights out." Bostwick was North�s sole scoring threat, scoring 12 points in the first half. "I felt like we contained Kersten Mellbye and we contained Lilly," Jaime said. "Those were the two we were worried about." North head coach J.T. Thomas said South played tough. "I do think they did a nice job of defending us on the perimeter," he said. "They didn�t respect Kailey the way they should have." "We didn�t get the ball to the high post as much as we would have liked to," Thomas said. "Nothing came easy. We were trying to do the same thing as (South), but they managed some good looks late in the game." Mueller predicted big things for South in the state playoffs, which start Feb. 21. "Our defense is awesome," Mueller said. "If our offense can come along I think we will go far in the state playoffs." Grant agreed. "Hopefully we will get matched up with teams that are similar to us," she said. "I think we will be the underdog ... with nothing to lose, so we will go in fired up," Thomas said the Black Tornado is already focused on future seasons. "I am really pleased with our young kids and we played with heart and intensity," he said. "My analogy would be that this is like buying a fixer-upper. You don�t start at the top, you start with the foundation ... This group of freshmen is successful and they will be players to watch ... The program is at the (point) where their big moment is ahead of them." South ends its regular season on Tuesday against Crater. North plays host to Grants Pass (6-7 SOC). NORTH MEDFORD (36) � Bostwick 15, Cordell 3, Heath 2, Seeley 1, Mellbye 8, Lilly 5, Westerman 2, Rettman 0, Siebenlist 0, Reeves 0 Gentry 0 Hwang 0 , Eastwold 0 . Totals: 12 8-15 36. SOUTH MEDFORD (52) � Wright 5, Grant 19, Ingram 3, Gillingham 0, Silva 1, Mueller 11, Singler 10, Brennan 3, Magness 0. Totals: 18 14-21 52. North Medford ....................................... 10 10 5 11 � 36 South Medford ....................................... 18 9 10 15 � 52 3-point goals � North Medford 4 (Bostwick 3, Cordell 1); South Medford 2 (Grant 1, Wright 1). Fouled out � none. JV result � North Medford won. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.