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Clearfield girls win Bald Eagle Area Tournament
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
By Jon Christoff Sports Writer
WINGATE - A championship game win at the Bald Eagle Area girls basketball tournament is something that has evaded the seven Clearfield seniors.
The Lady Bisons combined to win just one game in their last two appearances in Wingate, but Clearfield entered Tuesday's championship game against the hosts with experience on their side.
An uptempo, attacking offense and stingy defense, spearheaded by Madison Sopic, was all the Lady Bisons needed, as they gained the lead less than three minutes in and hung on from there for a 52-41 win.
"It's very satisfying to come down here and beat the home team in their environment," said Clearfield head coach Joey Castagnolo. "That just says so much about my seniors. Last year, (Bald Eagle) had that exchange student from Belgium and they really frustrated us. This year, we came down here with a mission to win that plaque, and we accomplished it."
"I thought we played excellent. With that kind of uptempo(-offense), you're going to have turnovers and you're going to have droughts. We fought through the droughts and the kids played with so much poise."
After the Lady Eagles took a 3-2 lead on an Anne Hoover foul shot, the Lady Bisons' offense found their groove and the result was 13-3 run to end the quarter.
Bald Eagle Area had no answer for Gwenn Porter or Sopic driving to the basket, and Amber Byerly and Elizabeth Peters each made buckets from point-blank range.
Porter, who was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, finished the night with a team-high 14 points, while Byerly (13) and Sopic (12) also added double digits.
Byerly led all Clearfield players with 11 rebounds, while Sopic paced the defense with seven steals.
"We've been building since they were freshmen for this team," Castagnolo said. "Every year was a stepping stone, and this year the kids know what it takes to win, and that's what got us over the hump from last year.
"It's hard to stop us because we have five girls that can score. We have a nice bench, too. I can't say enough about the way the team played. We got key baskets from Jayme Ryan. Madison Sopic played an excellent floor game, and, of course, Gwenn is Gwenn."
Clearfield's offense kept firing on all cylinders in the second, putting 19 more points on the board, but hit a wall in the second half and had to stave off a furious Lady Eagle comeback.
Bald Eagle Area found the open spots in the Lady Bisons' 1-3-1 defense, and Hoover was the beneficiary of many baskets underneath.
Hoover scored six of her team's 15 third-quarter points, as the Lady Eagles cut the deficit to nine heading into the fourth.
While Bald Eagle Area had some momentum, Peters quickly vanquished it with back-to-back buckets to open the fourth.
As Peters was dropping her shots, the Clearfield defense was doing its part to keep the Lady Eagles at bay. Bald Eagle Area didn't score until Hoover got loose once more with 4:03 remaining.
Byerly, who was named to the All-Tournament team, Sopic and Porter each had two points to cap the scoring in a slow-down version of the Clearfield offense, which was milking the clock late in the quarter.
Clearfield (3-0) will look to stay unbeaten Monday at Philipsburg-Osceola.
"I just can't say enough (about) the way the kids executed the plays I called. We executed and we played with a lot of heart and desire. This could be something special.
"Two years ago I was quoted saying, ‘we have to play like a District 6 team,' and every year we've grown and grown. I think we play like a District 6 team now, and we're prepping to (take) that next step." Moshannon Valley 47,
Jersey Shore 36
Games can be lost at the foul line, and Moshannon Valley nearly found that out against Jersey Shore in the consolation game of the Bald Eagle Area Tournament.
The Damsels jumped on the Lady Bulldogs early and led by as many as 17 in the first half, but Jersey Shore cut the deficit to single digits in the fourth quarter.
Mo Valley had a chance to close things out, but finished just 4-for-19 in the period.
Luckily for the Damsels, they had the post play of Maria Charney.
Charney scored a career-high 21 points to go along with 15 rebounds, as Mo Valley improved to 2-4 on the season.
"This was probably Maria's best game as a Damsel," said Mo Valley head coach Aaron Mills.
"Like I just told her, she was everywhere on the floor, whether it was (getting a rebound on) a missed foul shot or, if there was a loose ball, she was on the floor diving for it. She was getting two or three putbacks at a time.
"We're struggling at the foul line for whatever reason. ... Of course, it's totally different in the game when you're adrenaline is going, whether you're up or down. I think the girls just need to go up to the line, take their time a little bit more and they'll get better. Hopefully, that problem is solved here soon because this game could have easily been lost at the foul line."
After struggling to get the ball across half court in a loss Monday night to the hosts, the Damsels didn't have any such problem against the Lady Bulldogs.
Vanessa Rowley spearheaded Mo Valley's offensive attack in the first, driving to the basket and getting to the line or dishing off to Charney underneath.
Rowley and Charney combined to score the first 10 points of the game, as Jersey Shore was forced to call a timeout with 4:47 left in the first.
"The quick start helped us out," Mills said. "We were able to push the ball and they weren't able to get back on defense, so I think that fast-paced game really helped us out tonight.
"Vanessa Rowley did a great job out front finding people open underneath. She took the ball to the basket quite a bit. Luckily, at that pace, we were able to stay ahead of them."
Mo Valley outscored the Lady Bulldogs 16-3 in the opening stanza, but Jersey Shore outscored the Damsels the rest of the way.
With the Lady Bulldogs pulling to within seven on a pair of occasions late in the fourth, the Damsels looked to Charney inside and she was able to extend the lead both times.
Charney scored six points in the fourth and was a terror on the boards, as was teammate Claire Harlow. Harlow finished the game with 20 rebounds, as Mo Valley outrebounded Jersey Shore, 50-30.
"(Maria's) a huge help on the inside, along with Claire," said Mills. "That's really the focus we're trying to put on these girls - we can't have one girl do everything. If we hit the boards like we can do, we can go back up with a lot of offensive rebounds."
Mo Valley is back in action Monday when it hosts Juniata Valley. Consolation Game
Moshannon Valley-47
Rowley 5 7-19 18, Howe 0 1-4 1, Hutton 0 0-0 0, Harlow 2 1-8 5, Charney 10 1-7 21, Harris 0 0-0 0, Neff 0 2-4 2, Beirlair 0 0-0 0. Totals: 17 12-42 47.
Jersey Shore-36
McCloskey 3 1-2 7, Gehr 3 3-6 9, Haldeman 0 0-0 0, Martin 3 0-0 6, Mahaffey 0 0-0 0, Keller 1 3-4 5, Allen 3 1-2 9, Peacock 0 0-2 0, Smith 0 0-0 0, Weymouth 0 0-1 0. Totals: 13 8-17 36.
Three-pointers: Rowley; Allen 2.
Score by Quarters
Moshannon Valley ÁÁ16Á14Á7Á10-47
Jersey Shore ÁÁÀ3Á12Á9Á12-36 Championship Game
Bald Eagle Area-41
Butterworth 0 0-0 0, Ward 0 2-4 2, Davidson 0 0-3 0, Meek 3 0-1 6, Hoover 9 2-3 20, Hewitt 2 0-0 5, Kay. Miller 2 1-1 5, Gettig 1 0-1 2, Simpson 0 1-2 1, Josefik 0 0-0 0, Kai. Miller 0 0-0 0. Totals: 17 6-15 41.
Clearfield-52
Porter 6 2-4 14, Ja. Ryan 2 0-0 6, Sopic 4 4-4 12, Byerly 6 1-3 13, E. Peters 3 0-0 6, B. Peters 0 0-2 0, Butler 0 1-2 1, Zalno 0 0-0 0, Moore 0 0-0 0. Totals: 21 8-15 52.
Three-pointers: Hewitt; Ja. Ryan 2. Score by Quarters
Bald Eagle Area ÁÁÀ6Á12Á15ÁÀ8-41
Clearfield ÁÁ15Á19ÁÀ8Á10-52
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