HANNIBAL — River High School’s Lady Pilots overcame a sluggish first half Monday night at the R.L. Potts gym with a 17-0 run to begin the second half in a 48-19 OVAC 2-A semi-final win over downstream rival Frontier.

River’s 14th win in 17 tries sets up a rubber match with county rival Monroe Central at Harrison Central High, Saturday at 6, for the coveted OVAC crown. Central ousted Steubenville Central, 69-34, in the other semi.

It’ll be a seventh championship game appearance for RHS head coach Rick Isaly (he’s won three) and will be an opportunity to go back-to-back after River beat Wheeling Central a year ago.

“(Frontier) had a good gameplan slowing the pace at the start,” said Isaly, as the hosts watched the 10-6 record Lady Cougars play stall ball, but were coach Mike Cisler’s club missed nine-of-11 shots and had five turnovers.

River’s accuracy wasn’t any better (3-of-10), but goals from senior all-Ohioan Kelsey Harlan, Tessa Prim, and junior Kaylee Hagan had the hosts up 6-4 at the break.

Harlan, who led all scorers with 20 points and 10 rebounds, was big on the defensive end in the second as she followed a ‘3’ from Hagan with a steal and layup for a 13-4 lead.

A pair of Morgan Haught goals for Frontier wrapped around a layup from Prim kept the visitors within range, 15-8, at halftime.

“Once we took the floor in the second half we showed an ability to finish,” noted Isaly, as evidenced by 17 unanswered points including 11 from Harlan, who directed the Lady Pilot offense. “We haven’t shot well our last three games, but we wanted our press to work and in the second half it did.”

Zoey Fox backed Harlan with 10 points, while Prim was effective at both ends with seven rebounds.

Frontier nearly went scoreless in the third until a jumper at the horn from senior Grace Knowlton cut it to 32-10 after three. Knowlton, who had 25 points in a recent game against River, was held to three and is 20 points shy of 1,000 for her career.

Isaly’s employed the ‘4-corner’ offense to begin the fourth. “I told them nothing but layups and it worked,” as River made it 3-0 against the Cougs this winter.

Fox paced the Pilots in the fourth with three hoops, while Harlan added five. Hagan, Maci Isaly and Reed all were effective defenders.

Frontier hot 21 per cent (8­-of-37) and were guilty of 20 turnovers. River hit 45 per cent (19-of-42) and had nine turnovers.