Red Oak black and blue after quarterfinal tilt with Lomega

Courtney Fox bobbled her dribble, squeezed past a defender and let a 25-foot shot fly.

The Lomega senior’s heave found its mark as the buzzer sounded and while it had no significant impact on the game, it was further proof that it was Lomega’s night.

Fox’s 3- pointer gave the Lady Raiders a 22-point halftime lead in what turned into a 66-30 victory over No. 4 Red Oak in the Class B quarterfinals at State Fair Arena.

“It was that kind of day for us,” coach Kevin Lewallen said after his second-ranked Lady Raiders improved to 26-4 and advanced to play No. 3 Varnum in the semifinals Friday night (after press time).

“We made some big shots and got them down early, but I think our defense helped set up everything.”

Red Oak didn’t score for nearly five minutes to start the game and had 12 points while shooting 4 of 24 (17 percent) in the first half.

Lomega converted nine Red Oak turnovers into 12 points in the first half alone and forced 14 for the game.

Cox’s halftime shot gave her more points (14) than the Lady Eagles’ team.

She eventually finished with 24 and had six rebounds.

Emma Duffy added 14 points and seven boards while Megan Dunigan scored nine.

Lomega out-rebounded the bigger Lady Eagles 35-33. Tatum Yost had six of those boards to go with two points.

Overall, Red Oak was limited to 23 percent shooting (12 of 52).

“I just thought we made them rush things, even when they weren’t turning it over,” Lewallen said. “When we’re able to do that, we’re pretty tough to beat.”

Lomega has now won at least one state tournament game in its last 23 appearances. The Lady Raiders are looking to reach the finals for the fourth time in five years.

They missed the state tournament last year for the first time since 2011.