For a quarter, Porters Chapel had one shining tournament moment. Then Mt. Salus took control and shattered any Cinderella dreams PCA might have harbored.

Mt. Salus (12-6) went on a 25-0 run in the first half and shut out PCA in the second to win their first-round District 5-A tournament game going away. Mt. Salus advanced to a second-round matchup with Rebul on Friday, while PCA’s season ended with a 1-16 record.

Despite the lopsided final, PCA frustrated Mt. Salus for a quarter. Mt. Salus committed six turnovers and went just 4-for-15 from the field in the opening period, prompting coach Rod Morris to yank his starters off the floor. Claire Mims even gave PCA a 7-6 lead with a short jumper in the final minute of the quarter.

Desharra Jackson hit a 3-pointer with 10 seconds left in the first to put Mt. Salus back in front, however, and it pulled away from there. Mt. Salus scored the next 22 points and took a 32-9 lead into halftime. A layup by Marshedia Graise with two minutes left in the second quarter accounted for the only points PCA scored the rest of the game.

Mims led Porters Chapel with five points, while Jackson had 15 points and six steals for Mt. Salus. PCA committed 30 turnovers in the first half, and 39 in the game.

“They played hard,” Creel said of her team. “They come out every game and they’re the underdog, and they still play hard. I didn’t have anybody quit, so that says a lot.”