Monday,
February 17, 2014
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
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Rachel Jubelt was all over the court defensively for Northern Highlands, which flipped the script from last year's county final and knocked off defending champion IHA on Saturday, 52-42, in the this year's semifinal round. |
MAHWAH – When Northern Highlands advanced to last year's Bergen County Tournament final against Immaculate Heart Academy, it was expected to be an epic duel between the county's two best teams. However it was IHA that started fast, controlled the tempo, hit its free throws and finished strong in a game that was never close. So when the two teams met against in Saturday's Bergen County semifinal round, the Highlanders used the exact same blueprint that their opponent used a year ago on the same floor.
Even when IHA took its first lead in the fourth quarter, the Highlanders confidence never wavered. Madison Dunbar made a pair of layups to snap a tie and Melissa Heath hit all 13 of her free-throw attempts, including six in the final two minutes, as No. 4 seed Northern Highlands closed the game on a 14-2 run to upset the top seed and defending champion IHA with a 52-42 triumph at Ramapo College in Mahwah.
“We were so disappointed last year of how we played in the final. It's a surreal feeling to get another shot at IHA and to come out with a win,” said Dunbar, who will play at the University of Chicago next year. “After the loss in the county final last year and losing to them in the regular season this year, it feels amazing to finally get past them. I guess the third time really is the charm.”
Behind the play of Heath inside and Rachel Jubelt's on-the-ball defending around the perimeter, the Highlanders took control early. They looked like they were going to run away with the game when Dunbar hit a short jumper and followed it with a free-throw to give her team a surprising 19-6 advantage early in the second quarter.
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Kaitlin Roche scored 8 points for IHA, which fell to 16-5 on the season. |
But with Heath and Jubelt in foul trouble in the second quarter, the Blue Eagles started to have their way on the offensive end of the floor and they got to the foul line consistently. It looked like an ominous sign when Jubelt picked up her third foul with a second left in the half and IHA's Stephanie Olear hit two free-throws. Although Northern Highlands pretty much dominated the first half, the Blue Eagles were able to slice the lead all the way down to four by halftime, 25-21.
“We were in some foul trouble and it definitely affected how we played in the second quarter, but I didn't want it to affect how we came out in the second half.” said Northern Highlands' head coach Al Albanese. “They had the momentum and we knew they were going to keep charging at us. As long as we made smart decisions with the ball and kept battling on the glass, I knew we had a good shot going into those last few minutes.”
Dunbar hit a pull-up 3 to bump Northern Highlands' lead up to five, but the Blue Eagles quickly pulled back to within a point to start the fourth quarter with Dunbar off the floor after having injured her shoulder going for a loose ball late in the third quarter.
IHA finally took the lead and was up a basket with just over three minutes to play. These are the types of games that IHA always seems to win. Getting the opponent in foul trouble and wearing them down before taking over in the fourth quarter has been something the Blue Eagles have done successfully time and time again over the years. But on this afternoon, it was the Highlanders who made all the key plays down the stretch.
Caroline Lovisolo tied the game and Northern Highlands pulled back in front on a runner from Dunbar. Just seconds later as IHA raced back down court to trying and get the tying basket, Jubelt made the defensive play of the game. The sophomore guard who was hustling all over the court making plays all game long made a huge one by forcing a turnover at midcourt and feeding a wide-open Dunbar for a layup that made it a two-possession game. From there it was all Heath as she calmly twice sank both ends of a one-and-one and then added two more shots from the charity stripe as the Highlanders earned a return berth to the Bergen County final.
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Melissa Heath was a perfect 13 of 13 from the free throw line for Northern Highlands, which will play Teaneck next week for the county title. |
“We've been in a lot of close games this year that we've both won and lost, we just had to stay composed more than anything else,” said Jubelt. “We just played as hard as we could and tried out best to limit them from scoring or going on a run.”
Heath had a career day at the foul line on her way to a game-high 21 points to go with eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks for Northern Highlands (19-3). Dunbar had a solid overall performance with 16 points, five steals, and four assists. Jubelt led all players with six steals to go with seven points and three assists. Freshman Tori Reich also made an impact off the bench with eight rebounds, seven of those in the first half with Heath in foul trouble.
Roche and Rogers each led IHA (16-5) with eight points. Katia Oge added seven points, while Alex Mesropyan and Olear each chipped in with six.
Northern Highlands will get one more shot at revenge when they take on No. 3 seed Teaneck for the Bergen County title next Sunday at Ramapo College with a 2:00 pm. tipoff. Teaneck beat them at the buzzer in a regular-season meeting, but the Highlanders are hoping they can turn the tables on the Teaneck next weekend just like they did on IHA yesterday.
“We knew were the underdogs coming into this game and we'll be the underdogs again in the final,” said Heath. “There will be some nerves in big games, but we kept our composure and played Highlands basketball. As long as we make good decisions with the ball and play tough defense, we feel like we can win it. We let a chance slip through our hands last year after working hard to get to the final. We don't want to let that happen again.”
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