A tale of two halves

TED WADDELL
Posted 3/1/17

LAKE HUNTINGTON, NY — It was like watching two different games. In the first half of the girls’ non-league varsity game of hoops on February 16, the home team Lady Bulldogs of Sullivan …

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A tale of two halves

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LAKE HUNTINGTON, NY — It was like watching two different games.

In the first half of the girls’ non-league varsity game of hoops on February 16, the home team Lady Bulldogs of Sullivan West went on a 17-4 rampage against the Lady Eagles of Onteora.

But the second half was a reversal of fortunes, as the visitors almost pulled off a miracle win in the closing minutes.

Sullivan West led 6-4 at the close of the first period, and then posted an unanswered 11 points in the second frame to take a commanding 13-point halftime lead into the locker room.

At the start of the third period, the Lady Eagles showed they were back in the game, as each squad racked up eight points.

In the final frame, Onteora dominated the boards as they outgunned the Lady Bulldogs 12-3.

But at the final buzzer, the home team squeaked out a narrow four-point win (28-24).

At the :34.7 mark, Onteora’s Juliette Patterson stepped up to the free-throw line to pull her team within a bucket of tying it up.

In an example of “charity” beginning at home, in the final seconds Sullivan West’s Josephine Martinez and Danielle Brockner picked up back-to-back fouls, thus earning trips to the free-throw line.

Each went one-for-two, and those points aced the game for the home team, as the clock ticked down to zero.

Mike Groeters, coach of the Lady Eagles (4-15), said the game was “picture perfect,” in that while they struggle offensively early on with “aggressiveness,” they tend to finish strong in the closing minutes.

“I have a positive outlook going forward,” he said. “You saw in the fourth quarter what the team is capable of.”

Pat Donovan, coach of the Lady Bulldogs (5-8), summed it up.

“We played a great first half… [but] the second half was a completely different game… We couldn’t rebound in the second half, left too many good opportunities on the glass.”

Putting a positive spin on the ball, Donovan added, “We did what we needed to do the win, so that’s good.”

Onteora’s big gun was Grace Hallinan, with a total of eight points, while Kiley Klene and Monroe Maki each posted a three.

Sullivan West: Sabrina Martinez (11 points including a three), and Josephine Martinez (7).

Stats from the FTL: Sullivan West 5/13 (38%); Onteora 2/12 (17%).

Juliette Patterson is a 15-year-old sophomore forward at Onteora. Proving she is a master of the art of understatement, Patterson said, “I think we had a strong fourth quarter.”

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