Simcoe Reformer: Sabres Turn It Up In Second Half

Article By:  Jeff Dertinger

DELHI -- With a tremendous second half surge, the Simcoe junior girls basketball ensured there would be a squad of Sabres in every NSSAA final this week.


The Norfolk junior semifinal between Simcoe and Holy Trinity was close for one half, but it was all Sabres in the second 16 minutes as they won going away by a score of 45-23. Simcoe will now meet Delhi -- who defeated Waterford 73-21 -- in the league championship Thursday night.

With the score 22-16 at the half, Simcoe knew it had to step up the pressure and dash any hopes the Titans held of a comeback. They did just that by going on a 14-1 run in the third quarter, holding Holy Trinity to zero field goals.

"We have a really strong defence this year, and I think it really showed in that second half. We forced turnovers and completely shut them down," Sabres forward Jenna Schott said.

Schott was also one of three big scorers for the Sabres, pouring in 10 points. Hailey Taylor led the team with 15 points, finishing strong under the rim, while Gillian Pond had a standout performance on the point and poured in 11 herself.

"Gillian was a real spark plug for us today, she had an amazing game," Sabres coach Jim Carroll said. "The whole team was really pumped up at the beginning, and I thought they really took control in that second half."

Simcoe came ripping out of the gate, jumping to a 9-0 lead in the first 2:30. Yet the Titans fought back and never gave up, actually outscoring the Sabres over the next 13 minutes. Jenna Dierick led all Titans with eight points.

In the second half, not only did Simcoe step up their defence, but the Holy Trinity offense went ice cold. The team just could not get a shot to drop, as if the north-end basket had shrunk two sizes during the halftime break. Their first field goal didn't come until there was just 2:22 left.

There was a lighter moment that took place in the fourth quarter. With the game out of hand, a Holy Trinity player got a little confused and scored on the wrong net. Not two minutes later, a Simcoe player accidentally returned the favour, scoring on her own net. Everyone had a good chuckle and nobody was made to feel bad about their mistake.

In the second semifinal, Delhi jumped out early and coasted against the short-handed Wolves.

The Raiders took command with long passes to Kendra Freund for easy lay-ups, mixed with good post work by Leah Ebdon, Angela Koop, Taylor Simpson and Issy Dearlove. Erin Reeves-Damm also stood out for her defensive work on Waterford's main scoring threat, Ericka Chuli.

The Wolves only had six players on their roster, one of whom fouled out in the second quarter. But Waterford never stopped trying and never stopped hustling, a credit to the underdog squad having to face an undefeated opponent.

Ebdon finished the game with 18 points, Freund had 11 and Koop put in 10.

Due to a quirk in the scheduling, Simcoe will actually be the home team for Thursday's championship contest, scheduled to tip-off at 6 p.m. SCS is hosting both the senior and junior finals due to the Simcoe seniors finishing first overall in their division.

Both sides are looking forward to the contest. Schott says her team is stronger than ever and hoping the third time's a charm.

"The first time we played Delhi, they beat us by a lot, but the second time it was really much closer. I think we can give them a real challenge this time around."

The Raiders know they can't expect to just walk into SCS and be handed the trophy.

"The girls know what they have to do, Simcoe has a lot of strengths and is a very good team," Raiders coach Dale Norkus said last night. "We'll have to change up our tactics, because Simcoe will be ready for us. The girls have a lot of respect for this SCS team, and they can't wait."

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