West Valley City » American Fork coach Corey Clayton figured that Kearns hadn't experienced a 5A girls' state quarterfinal game in a while, so he told his team to put early pressure the Cougars.

That paid off Thursday afternoon as the Region 4 champions started quickly at Salt Lake Community College and buried Kearns 55-38 behind a balanced attack.

"We thought we would hit them in the mouth early," Clayton said. "They responded well after that initial onslaught of steals."

The Cavemen led 11-2 before the Cougars knew what hit them. Kearns cut that margin to five, but a 12-0 American Fork run late in the first quarter and early in the second put the game out of reach. The Cougars came within 10 at halftime but didn't seriously threaten American Fork, which improved to 20-2. The Cavemen, which forced 22 turnovers and held the Cougars (13-9) to 35 percent shooting, are seeking their first-ever girls' basketball championship.

Kaycee Mansfield led American Fork with 14 points, while Amy Krommmenhoek had 13 and Haley Holmstead and Cynde Mason each scored 10.

Kearns senior Brooke Larsen had 20 points and 11 rebounds.