Sunday,
March 16, 2014
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
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IHA won its first Non-Public A state championship since 2002 with a 45-43 victory over St. John-Vianney in the Non-Public A state final on Saturday at the Pine Belt Arena in Toms River. |
TOMS RIVER – History showed that heading into Saturday's Non-Public A state final, Immaculate Heart Academy was not supposed to win. Not only have the Blue Eagles struggled to get over the hump in each of the past two years in this round, but their opponent, St. John Vianney, had remarkably never lost in any of their previous 15 state final appearances. But as the final seconds of regulation wound down and the teams were tied, the Blue Eagles had a chance to make their own history and seized the moment.
Alex Mesropyan drove the lane then dished off to Kayla Oge on the block. With two defenders converging, Oge collected the ball and laid it up high off the glass and in with 4.5 seconds left as Immaculate Heart Academy won its first Non-Public A state championship since 2002 with a thrilling 45-43 triumph at Pine Belt Arena in Toms River.
“We knew no team had ever beat them in a state final and it feels incredible to play as well as we did,” said IHA's Caitlin Roche. “We had to leave our mark right from the first minute. I think we came into this game with more confidence than we did the past two years and it showed with how hard we played and how consistent we were.”
In the past two state finals, IHA has had climb back in the game from behind after slow starts. That was not the case this time as Jordan Wilmoth got the Blue Eagles off on the right foot. She hit a 3-pointer to open the scoring then scored an old-fashioned 3-point play to put them ahead, 10-5, at the end of one quarter.
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St. john-Vianney's Emily Uribe scored a game-high 22 points. |
Kelly Campbell's two free throws gave St. John Vianney a lead with just over two minutes to play in the half, but that was the only advantage on the scoreboard that the Lady Lancers' would have in the game. Lindsey Rogers hit a free throw and scored on a layup as IHA battled through foul trouble to survive the half with a 19-17 lead.
The lead was still two midway through the third quarter when Caitlin Roche nailed a 3-pointer then Rogers hit Oge with a great interior pass for an easy layup that gave the Blue Eagles their largest lead of the game, 27-20.
The Lancers cut the lead back three before consecutive baskets by Roche bumped it back up to seven, 39-32, with 4:53 to play. It looked like the Blue Eagles were about to pull away, but in the next 23 seconds everything changed. Coming out of a timeout, Jackie Gallagher nailed a 3 from the top of the key, then Emily Uribe picked off a long inbounds pass at midcourt and took it all the way to the rim for a conventional three-point play as St. John Vianney quickly cut the deficit to a single point, 39-38.
Two Roche free-throws pushed the lead up to three, but Uribe answered with a long 3-pointer to knot the score at 41. Mesropyan answered with a baseline drive to put IHA back in front and then Oge dove on a loose ball that was originally called a jumpball before IHA was awarded a timeout and possession with 2:03 left. The Blue Eagles were unable to hold the ball and eventually turned it over. Campbell made them pay by hitting both ends of a one-and-one to tie the game for the fifth time, 43-43, with 50 seconds to play.
St. John Vianney had no intention of letting the Blue Eagles dribble the clock down for a last shot and came with constant pressure and double-teams, forcing Mesropyan to get trapped and call the team's final timeout with 23 seconds remaining. There was no sugarcoating it; whether the IHA players would get to consider their season a success hinged on a single possession.
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Jordan Wilmoth finished with a double-double (10 points, 10 rebs.) for IHA, which improved to 24-5. |
“We knew that last possession was pretty much our entire season, it was really important to stay calm and make the right play,” said Mesropyan. “I just tried to protect the ball and make the open pass. Once I saw an opening, I drove and got it to Kayla inside. When it went in, we were all going crazy but there was still some time left so we had to stay focused.”
Gallagher tried to draw an offensive foul as the double-team came to Mesropyan's right but it was not called. That left an opening in the middle of the court where Mesropyan made a diagonal bounce pass to the right block for Oge. The junior bobbled the pass initially, but had the presence of mind to collect it and go right up. With a Lancer defender on each side of her, Oge laid it high off the glass and in with 4.5 seconds remaining to put IHA ahead, 45-43.
“We knew they were going to try and pressure Alex, so one of us would have an opportunity to score if she broke it,” said Oge. “It was a great pass and I actually bobbled it a little. It all happened quickly. I just stayed focused on catching it and it went in. It felt great to score that basket and it's a huge accomplishment to win like we did today.”
Gallagher drove the ball up the court, but was unable to get off a final shot as the IHA players poured onto the floor for what was a long-awaited celebration.
“Hearing that buzzer sound and piling on everyone with my teammates, that's the greatest feeling I've ever had,” added Roche. “We knows what it feels like to lose here the last two years and watch other teams celebrate. We had confidence that we could do this. But to actually have this play out the way it did, it's been something I've been dreaming about since I was a little kid and something I'll never forget.”
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Secaucus transfer Zoe Pero helped St. John-Vianney to a 24-5 record this season. |
IHA (24-5) has shown a balanced in its offensive attack all season and it showed up again in the state final. Roche and Oge each had 11 points to lead the way. Wilmoth notched a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Mesropyan faced constant pressure and came through brilliantly to finish with eight points, nine rebounds, and four assists. Uribe was 7 of 11 from the floor on her way to a game-highs of 22 points and four steals for St. John Vianney (24-5).
With a state title now in its back pocket, IHA will look forward to playing in the Tournament of Champions for the first time in 12 years. The seeds will be announced late Sunday night following the conclusion of the four public school finals. If the Blue Eagles receive a No. 1 or 2 seed, they will have a bye into the semifinals on Friday night. If they receive anywhere from the No. 3 to the No. 6 seed, they will play on Tuesday night in a first-round game.
Regardless of what seed they get who whom their opponent will be, IHA gets to practice at least one time and gets to play in at least one more game, which, for head coach Steve Silver, is all he could ask for.
“It feels great to get this one and to beat a great team like St. John Vianney makes it a little bit sweeter,” said Silver. “To be honest, I was just happy for our kids, that we represented our school well and we looked good fighting over every loose ball. We really went for it right from the get-go. To win a game like this, you needed the ultimate team effort. We knew what we were up against and we've been overmatched down here at times. For the school itself, it's a monkey off of our back. For this team, it means we get to still be together for a little while longer.”
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