The last two teams standing in the 2016-17 BBC eighth grade girls’ hoops tournament squared off for the conference championship on the morning of February 4. The Lady Eagles of Fayette came into the match up with a distinct size advantage over the Montpelier Lady Locomotives, and they put it to use from the opening tipoff. The Lady Locos absorbed the initial blow, then stormed back to blow away Fayette in stunning style, taking the game and the championship by a 27-22 score.
Fayette immediately went to work in the paint, putting up the first points of the game, then running out to an early 7-0 lead. It was there that the wheels fell off though, as they committed unforced errors and turnovers which Montpelier took quick advantage of, getting on the board and beginning a run of their own. The Lady Locos finished the first period on a 14-0 run that gave them a lead that they would not surrender on the way to a BBC title in their first campaign back in the conference.
Jessi Bumb led Montpelier with 12 points, while Tristen Bexten, Sonja Alvira and Ali Repp each added 4. No individual stats were received from Fayette.
Timothy Kays can be reached at tim@thevillagereporter.com