TITLE ELUDES JACKSON; GATEWAY TECH WINS 4A CROWN 42-41

COLUMBIA -- So close -- yet so far away -- for the third year in a row.

Jackson High's girls basketball team completed a remarkable three-season run here Saturday afternoon, although it didn't turn out exactly like the Lady Indians had planned.

For the second consecutive season, the Lady Indians lost in the Class 4A state championship game as Gateway Tech of St. Louis used a late 7-0 spurt to pull off a thrilling 42-41 victory at the Hearnes Center.

So Jackson -- which has finished third, second and second in the state the last three seasons -- closes out another sensational campaign with a 27-3 record.

Gateway Tech, meanwhile, not only walked off the court with the state title but the Jaguars capped their brilliant campaign with an unblemished 28-0 mark.

"It was another great year but we just came up a little bit short," said Jackson coach Ron Cook. "Two years ago we were undefeated and so was Cor Jesu. They beat us in the semifinals and won state. Last year we lost a hard-fought game in the finals. And now this.

"You and your girls have dreams and it's tough to come in second two years in a row. Sometimes you think that maybe it's not meant to be."

While the Lady Indians had tears of sorrow after the tough loss, the Jaguars cried with joy over their good fortune.

"We had a slogan: 'Our mission is recognition.' All I can say is, mission accomplished," said Gateway Tech coach Sherman Curtis, who shed some tears of his own. "I'm really happy for the girls."

Last year Gateway Tech -- which has only had a girls basketball program for a few years -- lost to Jackson in the sectional round.

"Jackson beat us last year, Springfield Glendale beat Jackson last year (in the finals), Jackson beat Springfield this year (in Friday's semifinals) and we had to beat Jackson to make it all work out right," Curtis said. "Jackson is a really good, aggressive team. They attack the basket and I really respect that."

Senior Michele Millham, who has been named to the past two Class 4A all-state teams and is a virtual lock to make it three in a row this year, led the Lady Indians offensively with 19 points. She also pulled down 14 rebounds.

Christa Millham, Michele's junior sister, added 15 points while senior Shannon Perry -- another all-stater from last year -- had seven points. Only three players scored for Jackson.

Meanwhile, Gateway showed much more balance, led by Brandi Archibald with 12 points. Latosha Thompson had nine, Tiana Ford eight and freshman Tara Harris seven.

Very little separated the teams the entire contest as neither club led by more than six points.

The Jaguars -- featuring plenty of quickness along with a big and strong front line -- scored the game's first four points and led most of the way but never could shake the Lady Indians.

Gateway led 8-5 after one quarter and pushed the advantage to 15-10 in the second period before settling for a 16-15 lead at halftime.

Jackson took its first lead of the game early in the third quarter on a Michele Millham basket, making it 17-16.

After a couple of lead changes, Gateway appeared to take control again by going ahead 29-23 late in the period.

But Michele Millham drained a 3-pointer as the third quarter came to a close, pulling the Lady Indians to within 29-26 and giving them plenty of momentum.

That momentum carried over into the early stages of the final period. Jackson finally took the lead again as Perry's jumper with 5:16 left made it 33-31. Michele Millham made two free throws at the 4:01 mark as the Lady Indians went up 35-32 for their biggest lead of the afternoon.

But to the young Jaguars' credit -- Gateway starts one freshmen and one sophomore while only two seniors play a lot -- they showed all kinds of composure in refusing to buckle.

The Jaguars held Jackson scoreless for more than three minutes while using a 7-0 run to take control.

A key sequence came with just under three minutes remaining when Harris hit a free throw to tie things at 35-35. She missed her second attempt, but Archibald scored off the rebound as the Jaguars went ahead 37-35.

Jackson missed three consecutive shots while still down by two. With 1:07 left, Ford -- a 39-percent free-throw shooter on the season -- calmly made a pair from the line, putting Gateway up 39-35.

Michele Millham's basket with 55 seconds left made it 39-37, but Hill made two free throws 10 seconds later for a 41-37 Gateway lead.

Perry hit one of two foul shots at the 27-second mark to bring Jackson within 41-38.

Ford almost committed a costly blunder with 24 seconds left as she took a long pass behind Jackson's defense but blew the layup.

Christa Millham, however, missed a 3-point try with 11 seconds left.

Archibald hit one of two free throws with 8.4 seconds to play, giving Gateway a 42-38 lead and virtually nailing down the state title.

Christa Millham did drain a 3-pointer just before the buzzer, but the horn sounded before Jackson could call a timeout as Gateway escaped with the one-point win.

"I always felt if we were in a close game, we could keep it together against any team," said Curtis, whose team -- partly because of a relatively soft schedule -- had very few close games all season. "We were in a situation where we could have folded, but we kept it together."

Said Cook, "Their strength inside was probably the biggest thing. And they hit some big free throws at the end, even a girl (Ford) who we wanted to foul because she wasn't a good free-throw shooter.

"They have a good team and we have a good team. A couple of things here and there and we could have won. But I guess it wasn't meant to be."