If Charles Dickens were still around, and attended this year’s
Catholic League girls’ basketball championship meet, he might
have been tempted to write a sequel to his classic, “A Tale of
Two Cities.”
The title? “A Tale of Two Halves.”
After two quarters, the crowd at St. Joseph’s University could
be excused for being tempted to leave early. With Archbishop Carroll
leading Cardinal O’Hara, 29-16, and showing no signs of letting
up, it appeared the Patriots were a cinch to capture their third consecutive
championship.
And then, it all changed.
When it was over, O’Hara had somehow outscored the Pats by an
implausible 31-10 in the second half and danced off the court with a
47-39 victory.
“We never gave up,” said senior point guard Lisa Claxton.
“We didn’t play well at all in the first half, and I think
we knew we were a lot better than what we were showing.”
Claxton was one of several Lions who played tenacious defense down the
stretch. O’Hara used that stifling defense meticulously, to claw
its way back in the game. With Carroll becoming visibly frustrated,
O’Hara played a smart offense, and entered the fourth quarter
trailing by only 33-30.
Then O’Hara, a school playing in its 15th straight Catholic League
final, completely took over enroute to its ninth league crown in that
stretch.
“It's a credit to our players,” said O'Hara coach Linus
McGinty, downplaying his own contribution, which, according to several
players, included a perfect halftime speech. “They have a lot
of experience and they tapped into it.”
McGinty, a man who has been around many championship teams in his career,
looked like a proud father as numerous people congratulated him from
every angle. He had reason to be proud. Few people outside O’Hara
really believed there was enough time for the Lions to outscore the
Pats by 14 points in the second half, let alone 31-10.
But that’s precisely what happened.
“We always have great games with Carroll,” said O’Hara
center Heather Scanlon, who scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds.
“We played them twice this year, and beat them both times, but
it could have gone the other way.”
When Scanlon wasn’t scoring, she was helping set up Kim Benton,
whose 10 points were almost matched by teammate Meghan Gardler’s
eight. Speaking of Gardler, she took a hard foul early in the third
quarter that seemed to turn the tide in O’Hara’s favor.
The Lions downplayed the event, but from that point on, the Lions were
a different team.
“We have a lot of pride,” Scanlon said. “We have a
winning tradition here. We didn’t want to lose in the championship
game for the third straight year. That would have been really disappointing.”
Claxton said what she will remember most about the great comeback was
that so many different players contributed to it — an accomplishment
that will be talked about for many years to come. The sister of NBA
player and former Philadelphia 76er Speedy Claxton, she was the emotional
leader of the Lions both on and off the court.
“If one person tried to take over and do it on her own, we wouldn't
have had a chance,” Claxton said. “But everyone did what
they could. They trusted each other to play their game. We did it on
offense, we did it on defense. It was so great.”
O’Hara’s fans also deserved kudos. Hoping to jump-start
their possibly deflated players, they let out a huge cheer to start
the third quarter.
Thanks to the Lions’ second-half effort, the fans were able to
maintain their enthusiasm until the final buzzer.
And thus, a classic was born.
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to jknebels@comcast.net.
Neumann College to honor leaders in Catholic
youth sports
Neumann College will present awards for Leadership in Catholic Youth
Sports on Sunday, May 22.
The College is accepting nominations for the awards in three categories:
elementary-level coaching (grades 1-8), secondary-level coaching (grades
9-12) and lifetime achievement. The awards are open to coaches of Catholic
Youth Organization(CYO) or school teams. The deadline for nominations
is March 1.
The awards will recognize leaders who have had a positive impact on
young athletes who play on teams sponsored by Catholic organizations
in the Allentown, Camden, Trenton, and Wilmington Dioceses and in the
Archdiocese of Philadelphia.
The sports awards will honor one elementary-level coach and one high
school coach whose behavior reflects Catholic teaching and whose works
with young people helps in their spiritual formation as well in building
their character and developing their good sportsmanship. The lifetime
achievement award will go to a coach who has demonstrated courage and
Catholic values, and who has positively influenced young people by creating
a sports environment for them that affords spiritual growth and character
development.
Criteria for the awards, and a nomination form that may be printed out,
are on the Neumann College Web site: www.neumann.edu. A link on the
home page leads to additional information about the nomination and selection
process.
The Center for Sport, Spirituality and Character Development and the
Sport Management program at Neumann College are co-sponsoring the awards.
Founded in 1999, the Center is dedicated to using sports as a vehicle
for spiritual, ethical and emotional growth. The Sport Management program,
which has been part of the Neumann curriculum since 1998, is designed
for individuals seeking careers in sports marketing, finance, event
management, and athletic and recreation administration.
“There are hundreds of people in this region who teach positive
values and embody good sportsmanship every day,” said Dr. Ed Hastings,
director of the Center. “These awards are meant to generate greater
awareness of their outstanding contributions and the importance of sportsmanship.”
Completed nomination forms should be submitted to Ed Hastings, Neumann
College, One Neumann Drive, Aston, PA, 19014. For more information,
contact Dr. Hastings at 610-361-5293.