Western's leading scorer, Latia Few, hit only one basket in last night's state Class 4A semifinal at UMBC, but it was the biggest shot of the game.

With 11 seconds left, Few drove for a layup to seal the No. 5 Doves' 47-42 victory over Frederick.

"I was off the whole night," said Few, who averages 15 points but was 1-for-13 last night. "But I wanted to contribute somehow. I wanted to make a basket when it really counted. I'm glad I hit that one."

The Doves (24-3) advanced to meet Prince George's County's Suitland at 3 p.m. tomorrow for the title. Last year, the Doves lost to Suitland, 68-67, in the semifinals after Few's three-pointer at the buzzer was ruled to have been shot too late.

Last night, Few made her last shot count after the rallying Cadets (23-4) gave her an open lane down the middle to the basket. Few's layup snapped a five-point Cadets run that had brought them within 45-42 on Ashley Bush's free throw with 48 seconds left.

After Bush's free-throw, the Cadets got the rebound, but Katie Brennan missed their next shot. Laura Jobe grabbed the rebound for the Cadets, but Western's Joy Gorham quickly tied her up. The possession arrow gave the ball to the Doves, yielding Few's shot.

The Doves, who led by as many as 13 points in the third quarter, went into a fourth-quarter tailspin, hitting only two baskets.

"We started to chase a little too much rather than play within ourselves," said Western coach Artie Uhlich. "When you chase, you start to foul. We needed better patience and better shot selection."

The Doves were in position to win because of a couple of key runs. Delena DeShields scored six and Crystal Falline and Lillian Drumgold added four each in a 14-point run that gave Western the lead for good midway through the second quarter.

After the Cadets pulled within 32-27 in the third quarter, the Doves answered with a 9-1 run.

"Their press definitely gave us trouble," said Frederick coach Todd Bono, whose taller team committed 27 turnovers. "They have quick, athletic guards. It was like they were playing 6-on-5 at times."

Even with Few struggling, the Doves had plenty of offense. Falline led the way with 15 points and four rebounds. Drumgold had 13 points and five rebounds. Gorham contributed nine points and DeShields, eight.

DuVal advances in 3A

Vanessa Neamo scored 27 points to lead DuVal's Tigers to a 68-51 Class 3A semifinal victory over Northern-Calvert last night at UMBC. The loss snapped a 19-game winning streak for the Patriots (24-3), the longest of any team in the tournament.

The Southern Marylanders had used an eight-point run to take a six-point lead midway through the third quarter. Then the lights went out in a corner of the gym, causing a 38-minute delay. Two minutes after play resumed, play was stopped another 15 minutes for an injury.

After that, the Prince George's countians (22-5) went on a tear, boosting their lead to 13 with a 12-4 run as the final quarter began.

Pub Date: 3/12/99