By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — It was Senior Night, so hardly surprising that Watauga senior Izzy Torgerson had a big game in the Pioneers’ 62-24 thumping of St. Stephens on Feb. 13, in a packed Lentz Eggers Gym. The 5-8 guard recorded one of the game’s most complete statistical lines: 15 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals and 1 blocked shot in helping lead Watauga.
On the other end of the age spectrum, freshman guard Josie Mayo closely matched Torgerson’s stat line with one of her own: a game-high 18 points, tied for team-high 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals. The Pioneers’ only other senior, Shelby Thompson, tied Mayo for game-high honors in assists (5). Listed as a 5-9 freshman forward, Mia Mitchell tied Mayo for team-high honors in rebounds (8).
The game got away from the visiting Indians very quickly, finding themselves on the wrong end of a 23-6 score after the first quarter — and it didn’t get any better for them until the fourth quarter when the Pioneers had emptied their bench. It was 37-9 at intermission, and 51-15 at the start of the final period.
With the win, Watauga has a firm hold on the No. 3 seed in next week’s Northwestern Conference tournament, finishing the regular season with a 6-4 conference record, 12-11 overall. McDowell (19-5) and Alexander Central (21-2) are tied with 9-1 conference records. Both should be awarded first round byes into the semifinals.
The pairings have not yet been announced, but Watauga will likely host a first round rematch with St. Stephens on Tuesday, Feb. 17. Tipoff will be announced at a later date.
KEY PERFORMERS
- WAT – Josie Mayo: 18 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals
- WAT – Izzy Torgerson: 15 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals, 1 blocked shot
- WAT – Mia Mitchell: 9 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 blocked shot
- WAT – Izzy Mohr: 8 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 blocked shot
- WAT – Shelby Thompson: 4 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals
- WAT – Charlie Mattox: 4 points, 1 rebound
- WAT – Susanna Goff: 2 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 blocked shot
- WAT – Presli Wood: 2 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals
- STST – Ady McHenry: 7 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals
- STST – Ella Barkley: 3 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 4 blocked shots
- STST – Kaitlyn Prado: 6 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists
