Had a couple of errands to run after work on this Wednesday which caused me to be a bit late getting up to Anoka-Ramsey for this night's big match-up with arch-rival Minnesota West. I got inside the Anoka-Ramsey gymnasium and settled in around the 16:11 mark with Minnesota West holding a shocking 10-2 lead.
The early deficit must have gotten the Golden Rams attention as they had to step on the gas pedal to tighten things up against this hot Minnesota West team. A lay-up by strong sophomore post Olivia Antilla at the 15:55 mark was followed by a "3" from the left wing by the former Osseo standout less than thirty seconds later that brought Anoka-Ramsey to within a single possession of the Lady Jays trailing 10-7. Minnesota West would get on 7-3 push over the next three minutes; fueled by a lay-up in transition by sophomore forward Tiffany Gehl at the 14:20 mark that got her fouled and allowed her to sink the obligatory freebie along with another lay-up at the 13:39 mark and two more charity stripe shots at the 12:45 mark. The Golden Rams would respond once again and draw to within three when sophomore forward Erica Parker knocked down a jumper in the lane at the 12:01 mark and willowy sophomore sharpshooting guard Nicole Schaub connected on a lay-up at the 11:23 mark that cut the Lady Jay advantage to 17-14.
But it was at this point where Minnesota West went on a three-point shot explosion that left the Golden Rams stunned and reeling; not to mention putting them in a double-digit hole. The long-bomb assault started at the 10:16 mark when Gehl drained a "3" from the right wing area which was followed up a minute later by a "3" from the left top area by freshman reserve guard Bridget Kramer that had the Lady Jays back up by nine at 23-14. Then it was freshman guard Brittney Hermeling connecting behind the arc from the left wing area with 8:37 left. Then it was the lanky southpaw sophomore forward Lindsey Drooger making the cotton sing with a "3" from the right top area with 7:20 left for a 29-16 lead. Anoka-Ramsey tried to counter on a lay-up with 7:10 left by Parker but then it was freshman guard Lydia Kemper draining a "3" from the right wing with 6:52 left that gave Minnesota West its largest lead at 32-18. But one unwavering characteristic of this Anoka-Ramsey program over the years under Head Coach David DeWitt is that they don't panic when things suddenly go bad or if an opponent gets a lead on them. And things would hold true to form coming down the stretch of the first half as the Golden Rams responded with a 22-13 run that would tighten things up considerably by the time the buzzer sounded ending the first half. Sophomore post Paris Finklea snared an offensive rebound for a putback with 6:39 left and then it was freshman guard Mattie Racek out of Parker, Colorado; drilling a "3" from the left top area with 5:40 left. Still facing a double-digit defict at 36-25, Racek calmly drained another "3"; this one from the left corner that sliced the Lady Jay advantage down to single digits at 36-28 with 4:10 left. Then it was time for Miss Reliable; sophomore point guard Maria Loughlin as she launched one of her patented cloud-scraping treys; this one from the the left top area with 2:56 left. A Hermeling "3" from the left corner temporarily halted this Golden Ram comeback but free throws from Parker with 2:24 left and a lay-up from Loughlin with 1:28 left had Anoka-Ramsey back to within seven at 43-36. A drive and finish by Minnesota West's Kramer made it a 45-37 ballgame with :36 left but then it was Loughlin; the Rogers native and former standout, draining a "3" from the left corner that not only cut the Minnesota West lead down to 45-40 at halftime but, perhaps just as important, seemed to suck some of the swagger and confidence that the Lady Jays enjoyed earlier in the first half.
Minnesota West seemed to recapture some of that swagger and confidence in the early moments in the second half as two quick scores - a score in the paint by Gehl at the 18:57 mark and a Drooger lay-up at the 18:31 mark - extended the Lady Jay lead back to nine at 49-40 and had DeWitt calling for an immediate timeout to assess this latest pitfall. Whatever was said in that Anoka-Ramsey huddle during that timeout seemed to have an immediate impact as the Golden Rams came out and went on a 22-5 game-changing tear over the next six minutes that effectively altered the course and momentum of this game. Just as impressive is that Anoka-Ramsey was getting scoring contributions in the paint by Antilla and on the perimeter from Racek, Schaub and Loughlin plus big defensive stops on the Lady Jays as well that seemed to stifle the potent Minnesota West attack that was so effective in the first half. After the Golden Rams had assumed the lead at 53-50 by the 15:01 mark on a steal and lay-up the other way by Racek, Minnesota West Head Coach Mike Fury; sensing impending doom, called a timeout to try and stave off the collapse taking place before his eyes. But the Lady Jays had few answers coming out of that break and Anoka-Ramsey kept attacking. Freshman forward Ashley Carter was fouled at the 14:04 mark and made the front end of the 1-and-1 but the errant back end freebie was hauled in by Antilla and she promptly got a putback that upped the Golden Ram advantage to 57-51. A Gehl freebie and a steal and lay-up the other way by Kemper pulled the Lady Jays to within three at 57-54 but Anoka-Ramsey was not about to let this lead get away from them. Loughlin connected on a lay-up at the 13:07 mark and then it was Antilla muscling her way into the paint again for a score that got her fouled and the obligatory free throw had the Golden Rams back up by eight at 62-54 and had Fury burning another timeout (and possibly a fuse as well).
Things steadily went downhill from there for the Lady Jays and Anoka-Ramsey was quick to pounce on their visitor's misfortunes. A score off of an inbounds pass by Parker had the Golden Rams up by double-digits at 66-56 by the 11:22 mark and two charity stripe shots by Parker at the 10:35 mark kept the cushion at double-digits. Minnesota West could only make intermittent stabs and jabs but could never sustain a decisive run that would allow them to catch the Golden Rams. Hermeling connected with a "3" from the left corner with 7:20 left for the Lady Jays but that was quickly countered by a drive and finish by the incredibly crafty and experienced Loughlin who maneuvered her way into the paint for a finish just as the shot clock was expiring for a 75-63 Anoka-Ramsey lead with 6:44 left. Antilla made another strong move down low for a finish with 5:28 left and then it was Loughlin uncorking one of her pretty high-arcing treys from the right wing with 4:20 left for an 81-69 lead. A drive and reverse lay-up by Racek with 3:06 left helped to put the finishing touches on this contest and a final dalliance with frustration on the Minnesota West side in the waning moments resulted in a technical foul being called on the Lady Jay bench as Anoka-Ramsey cruised to a 90-75 victory.
No comments:
Post a Comment