Heath’s pressure defense stymies Newark Catholic for LCL girls title.
NEWARK ― When Heath played Newark Catholic at home about a month ago, seniors A’mya Royster and Allie Dunlap were just returning from injury, and the Green Wave romped to a 59-36 win.
The Bulldogs, however, are a resilient bunch. In Saturday’s return clash at NC, they used their quickness and aggressiveness to fluster the much-bigger Green Wave. They turned motivation from a 23-point loss into 23 NC turnovers, finishing on a 9-0 run for a 52-45 victory and the Licking County League-Cardinal Division championship, the program’s first conference title since 2010. It ended a five-year stranglehold on the crown for NC, which has won 10 of the last 11 and had an over 20-game win streak snapped against Heath.
“The first game, we were not really prepared. Our defense watched film and studied them,” said Royster, who missed the first part of the season with an ankle injury, and scored a welcome nine points Saturday. “We knew what was on the line today. We were ready to play. Offense wins games, but defense wins championships.”
“We’re the smaller team, against most everyone we play,” said coach Katy Barry, who has staged a remarkable turnaround in her second season. “We have to be the more aggressive defensive team. The girls came in believing they would do this. I told them, the X’s and O’s are over. Now it’s up to you.”
Heath (16-5, 12-3), which won only six games last year, surprised everyone with this unlikeliest of titles, except themselves. Despite making just 17-of-50 from the floor for 34 percent Saturday, and watching the Green Wave (15-4, 10-4) come back from a 15-point deficit to take the lead, the Bulldogs didn’t crack.
Trailing 31-16 late in the first half, NC rallied behind stellar sophomore post Fini Kaiser, who scored 10 third-quarter points as the Green Wave trimmed the deficit to 41-39 heading to the fourth. Point guard Sophie Peloquin, who tallied 19 in the earlier meeting, continues to be hampered by an ankle injury and scored only two on Saturday. But sophomore Maddie Hampton sparked NC, lobbing twice inside to Kaiser for layups, then hitting a 12-foot jumper with 4:49 left as her team suddenly took a 45-43 lead.
“She ignited us,” coach Rob Smith said. “She played really well. We were kind of going on the fly, changing point guards. We got the two-point lead and we had chances to add to it. I thought we might break it open. But a lot of credit to them. Taliyah Holmes and Caroline Robertson do an outstanding job leading them, and they deserved it.”
Heath’s defense did not allow another point, forcing nine NC turnovers down the stretch.
Its closing surge was bookended by steals. Holmes, who played a splendid all-around game with 19 points, eight rebounds and six steals, hit two foul shots to tie it after being fouled on her breakaway. After a five-second call on NC, Royster notched a big rebound basket, giving Heath the lead for good. Royster made the front end of a one-and-one, then Robertson sank both ends to make it 50-45. Sophomore Peyton Del Cecato’s steal all but sealed it, as Robertson and Holmes added clinching free throws.
“We were not locking down on defense, when they came back, and we knew exactly what we had to do,” Holmes said. “Every single timeout, we realized what we were playing for, and we wanted it badly. When we lost earlier, we were frustrated, but since then, we’ve put the work in. Every win is important, but being for the league title, it just added to it.”
“A lot of our games have actually been practice for situations like this, because they’ve come down to the end,” Barry said.
The Green Wave jumped ahead 7-3 to start on Kylie Gibson’s 3-pointer, but Heath then stunned NC with its scrappiness on the boards, while challenging passes, shots and dribbles in a 28-8 blitz. Holmes had eight first-quarter points, including a coast-to-coast, 3-point play and a banked in 3-pointer, and Del Cecato added seven. Then, junior Kerilyn Davis came off the bench in the second quarter to help trigger the 15-point lead, with two baskets off steals and a rebound score.
“We knew they would play us triangle-and-two (on Holmes and Robertson,” Barry said. “I told the other girls, see, they think you can’t score. They were able to make some baskets, while contributing on defense and rebounding.” Robertson added eight points.
NC got a 24-point, 10-rebound performance from Kaiser, while Gibson added 11 points, Mayci Sayre had four steals and Maddie Kauble six rebounds. The Green Wave were a solid 18-of-37 from the field for 49 percent but couldn’t overcome the turnovers. NC held just a 27-25 advantage on the boards.
“Fini Kaiser was amazing. She has grown up, and has been unbelievable,” Smith said. “We have to make better decisions with the basketball. I don’t think we played that badly. We didn’t get the job done, and that’s more of a credit to what Heath did.”
The Bulldogs knew they would be improved this season. They just weren’t sure to what extent.
“Coming off last year, where we only won a…
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