The Bradford Lady Owls grabbed the lead with 2:16 left in the
first quarter and didn’t look back until Hollidaysburg’s Amanda
Ottoway came charging up in their rearview mirror.
Bradford led by as many as 12 points, but Ottoway’s game-high 21
points keyed the Lady Tigers’ rally for a 39-37 victory over the
Lady Owls on Saturday.
The two teams swapped baskets until a textbook give-and-go from
Nikki Siffrinn to Whitney Cline gave BHS the aforementioned 8-6
lead.
A host of Lady Owls got in on the act over the second and third
quarters to keep the Class AAAA Lady Tigers at bay.
A foul line jumper by Tricia Copeland and some shooter’s touch
made it 12-6 Bradford after one quarter.
At the 6:34 mark of the second, Cline cashed in from 15 feet for
a 14-6 score and to prompt a Hollidaysburg timeout.
From here, the Lady Tigers would pull as close as 16-13 before
the Lady Owls went on a 7-0 scoring spurt for a 23-13 halftime
bulge.
A Meghan Perschke foul shot ignited the spurt.
Siffrinn and Cline then executed yet another give-and-go as
Siffrinn jarred a pull-up jumper.
Cline cashed in a lay-up on a heads-up flash through the paint,
and Siffrinn and Cline connected again for a Siffrinn jump shot
with 40 seconds showing in the half.
Shelly Fuhrman got the friendly roll after the break for the
hosts’ biggest lead, 25-13.
Then Ottoway began to orchestrate her team’s comeback, beginning
with eight points of the Lady Tigers’ ensuing 10-4 run, and it was
a 29-25 game after three.
Ottoway scored first in the fourth with 6:37 left.
Then Siffrinn buried a shot from deep that seemed to temporarily
quell the visitors’ rally.
But after a Lady Tiger timeout with 4:38 left, Ottoway powered
the ball up and in and Erica Matko followed with a runner in the
lane to make it 32-31.
Bradford took a timeout of its own and Cline responded with a
put-back for a 34-31 score, but Hollidaysburg scored two baskets to
take a 35-34 lead.
Cline buried two shots from the line to grab it right back, but
Ottoway found the mark once again to stay on top, 37-36.
Siffrinn made a foul shot to tie it at 37-37 with 25 ticks to
go.
Then with 6.4 seconds left, Ottoway went to work on the interior
and drew some defensive contact.
At that point in such a hard-fought game, the expected judgment
from the referees would have been a no-call, but the officials blew
the whistle anyway and Ottoway canned the freebies for a 39-37
triumph.
However, the Lady Owls had their chances to win, and the hosts
shot a horrid 27 percent (4-for-15) at the foul line.
“Four-for-15 at the foul line hurts,” stated Doug Lloyd, BHS
coach. “We just have to shoot a better percentage in these
games.
“A lot of that comes from working so hard. We’re tired when we
get to the line, but we have to learn to concentrate a little
harder and put them in.”
Lloyd also expressed disappointment in his team’s overall
offensive effort in the second half.
“Our offense couldn’t get into it in the second – their defense
was really good – and we didn’t take care of the ball. Our defense
kept us in it, but the turnovers and our free throw percentage
really came back to haunt us.
“We didn’t handle their pressure as well as we should have but,
saying that, it was our game to win or lose. If we go even 50
percent from the line, we win the game.”
Cline led the Lady Owls with another double-double, scoring 12
points and pulling down 11 rebounds. She also dished out five
assists and grabbed four steals. Siffrinn contributed 12 marks.
“I thought, again, Whitney and Nikki played a heck of a game,”
Lloyd praised. “Nikki controlled the ball and didn’t have any
turnovers. Whitney does a nice job inside with her help defense and
rebounded well against a team that size.
“Meghan Perschke did a nice job of boxing out and rebounding,”
Lloyd added. “Liz Keller and Shelly Fuhrman did a nice job handling
the ball.
“It was frustrating to walk out of here with a loss, but it’s
early in the season and we’re just looking ahead now. If we can get
better as we go, we’re going to have a great year. We just can’t
let down, keep our heads up, learn and move on.”
The Lady Owls, now 2-2, visit Olean today.
