St. John the Baptist girls lose Class A final to Cardinal Spellman
St. John the Baptist's Cara McCormack drives the ball ahead of St. JohnÕs PrepÕs Konstandina Sideris during a CHSAA Class A girls basketball semifinal game on Friday, March 8, 2019. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Close games are something the St. John the Baptist girls’ basketball team knows plenty about and have won a few.
Going into the fourth quarter against Cardinal Spellman on Saturday, the Cougars trailed by two points. But unlike previous games, the Cougars couldn’t catch up. They lost to Cardinal Spellman, 58-47, in the CHSAA Class A state championship at Fordham.
“We didn’t execute down the stretch,” coach Kate Gordon said. “I was worried about fatigue. We didn’t push the tempo like we usually do. We didn’t knock down the shots… but this team is something special.”
Friday night the Cougars beat St. John’s Prep 46-45 to earn their ticket to the state championship.
“We were definitely tired heading into this game,” senior Ally Ponzio said. “We played a tough game last night then went home right away with little rest but it is what it is. We had an off day but overall we were there for each other.”
The Cougars held the lead up into the final second of the second quarter. Spellman scored at the buzzer to go up 40-38. The third quarter ended in similar fashion but in the fourth Spellman pulled away, outscoring the Cougars by nine points.
Fouls were a big factor, to the Cougars disadvantage. Spellman made 18 free throws.
“We got a lot of fouls called on us,” Gordon said.
Ponzio added, “The refs are a part of the game. You have to play with what they are giving you. If they aren’t giving you anything, you have to make the best of it. No excuses.”
Ponzio finished with 10 points and five rebounds. Junior Cara McCormack was the game's leading scorer with 14 points. She also added three rebounds and two assists.
Most of the Cougars will return for next season except Ponzio. Her tenure at St. John the Baptist includes recovering from a broken neck and becoming the star athlete on the team.
“Ally’s our comeback kid,” Gordon said. “Losing Ally and her leadership will be interesting, but we have 12 kids returning. We lost counties last year but we came back and won it this year. Now we just have to get over this hump.”
Ponzio added, “I couldn’t have overcome my injury without my team, my family. The last four years, we pushed each other and worked so hard. I loved playing with this team every second.”
