Solanco's girls basketball team split its final two games of the season to finish with a record of 7-15 overall, 5-11 Lancaster-Lebanon League. Ephrata upended the Mules 60-32 Tuesday, February 2, in the finale. Needing a victory to claim the Section Two title outright, Ephrata stormed out to a 15-0 lead. "They came in and took care of business," Solanco coach Chad McDowell said. "It was one of those games. Ephrata played an aggressive man-to-man defense and we struggled to get a rhythm going."
The Mules trailed 27-15 at halftime. "It was too big of a hole and we couldn't get out," McDowell said. "The effort was there but we never got the momentum." Jess Cabrera connected on three three-pointers for a team-high nine points and added a pair of steals. Gabby Rossi (two assists), Aleksa Burger (eight rebounds, two steals, and two assists), Nikki Boultinghouse (six rebounds) each supplied six points. Elaina Daley had three points and two assists. Grace Kreider contributed two points, four rebounds, and three steals. On Monday, February 1, Solanco defeated Lebanon, 59-55. "We played one of our best games of the season," said McDowell. "It was a great game to be a part of. Throughout the game, a different player stepped up. The whole team made sure what needed to be done was done. It was a game of back and forth runs. The effort was outstanding. The atmosphere in the gym was electric with the parents, fans, and The Black Hole. The positive energy in the gym created positive energy on the court. It was the culmination of two years of hard work." Trailing 20-12 at the end of the first eight minutes, the Mules outscored Lebanon 15-6 in the second quarter to take a 27-26 halftime lead. "I was a little worried in the first quarter but we weathered the storm and hung around," McDowell said. "That was the key." Cabrera scored 11 of her 13 points to lead Solanco's second quarter rally. She made all four shots from the field including a three-pointer and made both free throw attempts. "Jess was the catalyst," said McDowell. "It was good to see her shoot well. She gave us the spark we needed." Lebanon led 38-31 midway through the third quarter before Solanco narrowed the gap to 42-41 heading into the fourth. McDowell said Jen Everly, Liz Mowrer, and Grace Kreider helped the Mules stay close early in the fourth quarter. Eberly recorded a rebound on five straight possessions. Mowrer contributed when Boultinghouse picked up her fourth foul. "Grace was all over the place and disrupted their rhythm," McDowell said. Solanco trailed 50-48 midway through the fourth quarter before taking command. Boultinghouse scored to tie and and Rossi banked in a long range three-pointer to put the Mules in front 53-50. Rossi scored Solanco's last nine points of the game. McDowell said Burger did a solid job defending Lebanon star Alexis Hill, who returned from an injury. "We played a box-and-one defense and Aleksa did an outstanding job. Hill still got her points (20), but most of them came in transition. When they had to play in a halfcourt set they struggled." McDowell was pleased his squad did something they had trouble accomplishing for most of the season. "We put four quarter together," he said. "We didn't get rattled. We were down eight points twice but we stayed composed and didn't panic. They executed the gameplan almost to perfection. I'm proud of the team, the fans, and the community. It was a great win and we're going to use it as a steppingstone to next year." Rossi finished with 16 points, eight assists, and three steals. Cabrera recorded 13 points, four rebounds, and three steals. Boultinghouse provided 10 points and four boards. Burger had eight points and seven rebounds, Mowrer posted seven points and five rebounds. Eberly notched five points and eight rebounds and Kreider handed out four assists. In the JV game, Hannah Phillips had 13 points and Kara McClune added 10 to help Solanco top Lebanon, 49-28. Comments are closed.
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