Sunday,
January 25, 2015
By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer
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Freshman Amber Porrett finished just two blocked shots short of a triple-double as Dumont won its first county tourney game since 2006 with a 59-41 win over Indian Hills on Saturday. |
DUMONT – Independent games are designed so that teams can branch out and test themselves against different levels or competition and different styles of play. Having won 10 of its first 11 games of the season, Dumont’s torrid start came to a screeching halt when it went out of its league to take on Indian Hills last Friday night. In that matchup, Indian Hills raced out to a quick lead and won easily and it started a downward spiral for the young Lady Huskies, who lost three of four starting with that loss.
It is rare that a team gets a chance for revenge against an opponent out of its league, but that was the opportunity the Lady Huskies had when Indian Hills returned the schedule and this time with much more at stake.
Led by sophomore sharpshooter Sarah Skeith and freshman center Amber Porrett in the middle, it was the Huskies who led wire-to-wire the second time around. An 8-0 run to start the second half provided the necessary breathing room as 15th seeded Dumont scored its first Bergen County Tournament victory in nine years with a 59-41 triumph over the No. 18 Braves in a first round game on Saturday at Dumont High School.
“We made a lot of mistakes the last time we played them, so we had to correct the little errors we made against them the first time and not make the same ones for this game,” said Skeith, one of North Jersey’s leading 3-point shooters. “We did a better job of boxing out today and we had to hit open shots. Everyone on this team can contribute and we all contributed at the same time in the third quarter. That’s what got us going.”
Dumont took the lead early, 7-2, on a Skeith 3. She then nailed two more in the second quarter to give the Huskies a nine-point lead. Indian Hills appeared to have grabbed the momentum with Emily Shlapak’s 3-pointer cutting the lead to four at half, 23-19, but the Huskies made sure that any momentum shift in the Braves’ direction would be short-lived.
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Angela Saric and Indian Hills fell to 6-6 on the season. |
Right out of the locker room Dumont inbounded the ball to start the third quarter and used a bit of trickery to get an easy basket. The Huskies acted as if they were going towards the same end of the court they were shooting at in the first half before Sophia Kourian broke towards the other basket. Sarah Keefe hit her in stride and Kourian was all alone for an easy layup. That sparked an 8-0 run capped by a putback from Porrett, who dominated the paint in the second half, for a 31-19 lead.
“I just wanted to do my job inside. That’s what I’m here for,” said Porrett. “Once I score or block a shot, I want to work harder to get the next one. Once we started off the way we did in the third quarter, we just had to keep going.”
Indian Hills fought hard the rest of the way in an effort to cut the deficit, but with a cold shooting night from the outside and Porrett blocking seemingly every shot in the paint, the Braves never got back within single-digits.
“We did not play simple basketball and they did. That’s the difference,” said Indian Hills’ head coach Julie Haledjian. “It’s just frustrating to get to this point and not play your game. They had stretches where they couldn’t miss a shot and we dug ourselves too big of a hole at the beginning of the third quarter.”
Just a freshman, Porrett has emerged on the scene as a versatile player that can be a force on both ends of the floor. She was dominant yesterday leading all players with 20 points, 14 rebounds, and eight blocks for Dumont (12-5). Skeith added 18 points, nine of those in the second quarter. Kourian netted 11 of her season-high 13 points in the second half. Senior Christina Grady chipped in with six points on a pair of 3-pointers.
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Sarah Skeith and Dumont will play No. 2 Northern Highlands in the Round of 16. |
Aileen Carey scored all of her career-high 13 points in the second half for Indian Hills (6-6). Karley Greulich was the only other Braves’ player to reach double-figures with 11 points.
Going into the BCT Round of 16 for the first time since 2006, Dumont will be the heaviest of underdogs against second-seeded and defending Bergen County champion Northern Highlands. But with everything to gain and nothing to lose, it will be an experience that none of the Huskies will ever forget.
“It’s going to be fun and we’ll be very loose going into that game,” said Dumont head coach Dave Cieplicki. “I thought my seniors really did a great job today and this will be a great experience for both them and our younger kids. I want people to see who Sarah (Skeith) is, I want them to see Amber (Porrett), and I want them to see just what the Dumont Huskies are all about. That third quarter was what we’re striving to be. If we can bottle that up and put it together for 32 minutes, we’re going to be a really tough team to beat.”
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