by Freddy Wagner Special to The Herald The Perryville girls basketball team prevailed over Kent County in a first round region tournament game Friday, 45-41. Stepping on the hardwood with playoff hopes on the line, Perryville head coach Amanda Wolfe wanted her team to play around one basic concept - the fundamentals. “Our philosophy was to come in and play Perryville basketball”, said Wolfe. “It’s fundamentals. We are a fundamentally sound team.” Facing an unfamiliar opponent in the fifth seeded Kent County Trojans, both teams didn’t really know what to expect from one another and that showed in a contest that featured seven lead changes.
Kent County pounced on a 9-2 lead early in the first, capped off by a three point shot that prompted Wolfe to call a timeout and rally her team. Perryville shook off the initial deficit and was down, but within reach, with the score at 11-6 heading into the second. Perryville then scored seven straight with help from center Emani Bell, who carried a hefty workload all game and was a dominant presence inside. Neither team could figure out how to break away, and the score was tied at 15 apiece heading into halftime. Wolfe delivered a familiar message to her team with only 16 minutes left in regulation. “[I told my team] to play Perryville basketball,” she said. “If we can play good, fundamentally sound defense, as well as we play on offense, we’ll be okay.” Coming out of the break, the Panthers began to show their might with strong rebounds on the glass that converted into easy putback points. Kent County responded to each score and never let the deficit grow beyond four, ultimately leading to a 25-25 tie and promising an exciting finish to the game. After junior forward Brianna Yadlosky converted on a putback and-one, Kent County scored a flurry of points in quick succession, going on an eight point run and securing a 33-28 lead. Wolfe called a timeout, and regrouped her team with playoff aspirations quickly slipping away late in the fourth. “[We need] to wake up,” she told her squad. Her Panthers answered with an eight-point run of their own, and with time becoming a key factor, Yadlosky secured the lead for her team with a putback bucket with less than three minutes remaining. “I think [Yadlosky] knew it was time to step up, and be the leader that she knows how to be,” said Coach Wolfe on her junior’s strong fourth quarter performance. Although Kent County hit a miracle trey, bringing the score to within a one point differential, the Panthers were able to hold on a secure a road trip to round two of the 1A girls’ basketball playoffs. “I was glad we got a win”, said Wolfe. The Panthers were propelled by a stellar performance by their frontcourt, with Yadlosky putting up 17 points in the effort and Bell tacking on another 12 in the win. Looking on to Tuesday’s matchup against Joppatowne, the Panthers’ coach wants to play around unity. “We are going to have to come together as a team,” Wolfe said, “and play the best game we’ve played all season.” Comments are closed.
|
Categories
All
Archives
December 2018
|