Monday, February 8, 2010

By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer

Brittany Simms and ninth-seeded St. Mary's pulled the mild upset, 51-47, over No. 8 IHA.

HILLSDALE – Although it was it was just a consolation game in the Joe Poli Holiday Tournament back in December, Martina Ellerbe of St. Mary (Rutherford) took it as more than just that. That one-point loss to IHA has fueled Ellerbe and her teammates to work that much harder in practice in the hopes that they would get another shot against IHA-caliber opponents in the Bergen County Tournament.

Ellerbe’s wish came true when the two talented teams met up again in yesterday’s Round of 16 in front of a packed house at Pascack Valley High School. Holding a three-point lead late in the fourth quarter, Ellerbe received the ball and was wide-open on the wing. While her basketball brain told her to hold the ball and pull it back out, her instinct told her to shoot when she is that open.

The hundreds of shots she takes a day from three-point range were in preparation may not have been for this particular situation, but the end result was just the same. Ellerbe canned the three-pointer with 58 seconds to play to double ninth-seeded St. Mary’s lead and it held on for a 51-47 triumph over IHA, the No. 8 seed.

“We were excited to play IHA again and it feels great to come out with a win this time,” said Ellerbe. “It was tough the whole game to get on a run like we usually do. But we didn’t let them get on a run either, so it evened out.”

The teams traded leads throughout the first quarter until Ellerbe’s three-pointer gave the Gaels a 17-14 lead at end of the first quarter. IHA came back to take the lead, but not for long. Brittany Sims scored on a wild reverse layup to tie the game. Meghan Bohan followed with two baskets in the final 90 seconds of the half to give St. Mary’s a 29-26 halftime lead.

Colleen O’Connell scored 8 points for IHA, which fell to 14-4.

“Meghan Bohan came up with some big plays late in the first half to give us some momentum going into the second half,” said St. Mary’s head coach Lou Bonora. “Our kids played hard as they always do, but what I was impressed with was how much poise we showed. IHA is a very tough team and you aren’t going to beat them if you don’t show poise and patience. We tried to contest their shooters to put the ball on the floor and we had some success doing that.”

Neither team held more than a two-point lead in the third quarter until a two-possession span broke open the game. Kiara Dunston hit a three-pointer with just seconds left in the third quarter and Ellerbe hit another from almost the exact same spot to bump St. Mary’s lead up to seven, 43-36.

“It was back and forth until those two threes, then we had an uphill climb,” said IHA head coach Steve Silver. “I thought we played pretty well defensively. (Martina) Ellerbe just stepped up and made some big shots for them.”

IHA should have caught a break with 4:47 to play when the ball was inbounded and six Lady Gaels were on the court. One of them realized it and came off the other side of the court, which is normally a technical foul. That would have given IHA two foul shots and the ball, but it was not called and play continued.

A basket by Tara Wilk and free-throws by Ali Volant trimmed the lead down to three points, 48-45, with just over a minute to play. IHA was in a full-court press and the Gaels were able to break it and get the ball to an open Ellerbe beyond the three-point arc. While the situation did not call for it, she rose up and took the shot without any hesitation.

A miss, and IHA could have come down with a chance to tie the game. But that was a thought that only entered Ellerbe’s mind for a split second. The Ohio State-bound senior’s shot hit nothing but the bottom of the net to double the Gaels’ three-point lead to six, 51-45, with 58 seconds remaining.

“It was a rushed judgment call, but I had the confidence in myself and took the shot,” said Ellerbe. “When the ball was in the air, I thought maybe I should have pulled the ball back out and let them foul us. But my coaches and my teammates have the confidence in me to take and make that shot, so I took it. Even if I missed, we were still up by three with under a minute left, which isn’t a bad position to be in.”

Ellerbe finished with 18 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocked shots for St. Mary’s (15-3). Sims and Kiara Dunston each had eight points, while Bohan and Kiyana Dunston added seven apiece. Maggie LaRiviere led a balanced scoring attack for IHA (14-4) with nine points. Ashley Morella, Colleen O’Connell, and Wilk each added eight.

St. Mary’s now has a signature win and will look to add another next week against top-seeded Teaneck. But for a few minutes at least on Sunday, Ellerbe and her teammates were content with simply enjoying this win.

“We wanted this one so bad and we went out and got it,” added Ellerbe. “We will come into next week as the underdog. Being an underdog is something we haven’t been in a long time, so we have nothing to lose.”

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