High school girl's basketball: Unlikely hero lifts the Bonneville Lakers to victory

WASHINGTON TERRACE — Kayla Eilertson blushed as the crowd swarmed the court and hoisted her into the air.

The sophomore guard only scored three points in Bonneville's 48-45 win over Mountain Crest, but it happened to be just about the most spectacular three points scored in the battle of Region 5 unbeatens Tuesday night.

"I don't know what it was, but who cares," said her teammate, senior forward McKinlee Westmoreland, who led the Lakers' offense with 16 points. "That was a huge win for us. I can't remember the last time we beat Mountain Crest."

No one will be forgetting this Laker win after the lanky sophomore turned a blown play into a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

"The ball was supposed to go to her," said Bonneville head coach Mike Russell. "But she got there early."

Eilertson said she looked for her teammate Courtney Porter, who'd had the hot hand in the second half. But she was covered.

"I looked at Courtney, and then I looked at the clock and saw two seconds left," said Eilertson. "So I just shot it."

It was not pretty. But it was good.

Both teams battled hard and both coaches came up with good adjustments to the other's strategy. In the end, the Lakers' ability to slow the game, grab rebounds and make free throws made the difference.

"They played smart," said Mountain Crest head coach Candace Thornton. "Bonneville planned well. I'm super proud of the way my girls played defense. … But free throws hurt us. We make a couple of those and this game is ours."

Mountain Crest was 10-of-19 from the foul line, while Bonneville was 14-of-24. She said the Mustangs "like to run and they like a much slower game."

The Lakers were able to control the tempo of the game most of the time.

Foul trouble plagued both teams as Bonneville had to sit and then lost junior guard Emilie Volk. She only scored eight points, and Russell said playing without her is difficult for the Lakers.

"It's a confidence thing," he said. "When Emilie is out there, she's just a leader. Just her presence on the court helps us. It definitely hurt to lose her."