St. John's Leads Best of Three Series 1-0Article By: Gavin Crites
Although struggling to find their rhythm for the first the three quarters of the game, the St. John's College Green Eagles found a way to win late in the fourth, taking a 1-0 lead over the Assumption College Lions in Brant County high school senior girls basketball finals.
The Eagles took their first lead with a minute and half remaining and hit some important free throws to seal their 40-35 win Tuesday night.
"We knew they were going to come out strong. I think we got a little nervous about that," said Katie Polischuk, who battled for every one of her team-leading 20 points.
"They put a lot of pressure on us and it was good pressure. They were playing good defence.
"Even though we didn't get the outcome we wanted, I thought they really worked hard." Assumption coach Rick Heron
"It's the finals. It's a big deal." Green Eagle Katie Polischuk
"It's the finals. It's a big deal." Green Eagle Katie Polischuk
I think we just panicked a little bit," Polischuk added.
With the 36-35 lead and under a minute left in the game, Eagles' guard Lauren Dubois was fouled to stop the clock. Dubois went two for two from the line, adding a bit of cushion to a lead that did not come easy for St. John's.
"It was just a rush," Dubois said. "It was great for our team."
She saw some extra minutes in the game following an ankle injury to point guard Shawni Hnatiuk late in the second quarter.
"Having our one guard out, our main guard, I had to really step it up today," Dubois said.
"I had to show the team I was ready to step in, especially in one of the championship games."
Polischuk said that this isn't the first time the Eagles have had to come back from being down on the scoreboard, but she added it took them a lot longer than they would have liked.
"It's the finals. It's a big deal," she said. "The winner of this goes to CWOSSAA."
Assumption got into some foul trouble early in the game. The Eagles had 23 free throw opportunities, while the Lions only had seven.
"When we play high intensity, high defence, we're going to have to live through those storms," said Lions coach Rich Heron, adding that his team will have to work on "those game situations" when the score is tight and there's two or three minutes left on the clock.
"Even though we didn't get the outcome we wanted, I thought they really worked hard," Heron said. "For a championship game, they now know what it takes to win it."
Abby Heron led the Lions in scoring with 12 points. while Rebekah Couperus added 10.
Game 2 of the senior finals will be held Thursday at BCI. Game time is 7 p.m.
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