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Almost six minutes into the fourth quarter, with 3-pointers no longer falling in, American Fork appeared to be in full stall mode Friday night.

Its lead down to four against Riverton to determine the leader of Region 4-5A girls' basketball, an actual stall was a possibility. That is, until junior Jenna Shepherd started seeing open lanes to the basket.

Two old-fashioned three-point plays in a row by Shepherd thwarted visiting Riverton's final comback effort as American Fork came away with a crucial 50-39 victory.

"Coach [Corey Clayton] told us at halftime that each team has its runs, so we just needed to come together and get through it," said Shepherd, the game's leading scorer with 16 points.

Shepherd was crucial in the early going as well as American Fork (13-4, 6-0) jumped to a 12-4 lead in the first quarter.

But Riverton (12-3, 5-1), after falling behind by as many as 14 points in the third quarter, went on a 10-0 run in the fourth quarter to cut American Fork's lead to 39-35. Kirsten Spencer and Kiana Tai each scored to complete the run for the Silverwolves, who were led by Tiena Afu's 11 points.

That's when Shepherd, with 2:34 remaining, saw an opening to the left and raced to the bucket for a basket and a foul.

"We worked the ball. It was a mismatch and I saw it was a drive-by, but it was all because of my teammates working it," Shepherd said.

Thirty-seven seconds later, Shepherd picked her third steal of the game and went coast-to-coast for another score, and tacked on an free throw as the lead was up to 45-35.

Both squads came into the game unbeaten in region. The game wrapped up the first half of the 4-5A slate, with American Fork heading into the second half as the front-runner.

Taylor Moeaki also scored 13 points for the victors while Paige Farnsworth, who drained three 3-pointers, added 10. —

American Fork 50, Riverton 39

R American Fork is the Region 4-5A leader after both teams were undefeated in league play.

• Jenna Shepherd scores consecutive three-point plays late to give American Fork a 10-point lead.

• Shepherd's run starts an 11-2 run for AF.