BISHOP CANEVIN 58, KANE 39

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March 9, 2010 - PIAA Class AA Girls' Play-in game

PIAA Playoff Home Page

By SHAWN FOX

For D9Sports.com

PITTSBURGH – Too many turnovers and too many missed foul shots doomed Kane Tuesday evening in its PIAA Class AA Girls’ Basketball play-in game at Bishop Canevin High School.

The host Lady Crusaders used a stifling, in-your-face pressure defense to force 34 Lady Wolves miscues, and Kane hit just 9-of-24 free throws in a 58-39 setback.

“We battled,” said Kane coach Dave Kiehl, whose team had a nearly three-hour bus ride to get to the game. “That’s a quick team. We missed too many foul shots and had too many turnovers, obviously. But, I’m proud of them. These girls had a terrific season.”

Bishop Canevin, the eighth-place team from the WPIAL, grabbed an 8-3 lead midway through the first quarter before the Lady Wolves were able to shake off their bus lag.

The District 9 runners-up tied the game at 8-all with 2:17 remaining in the opening stanza on buckets by Ashley Wilson and Kalie Walter and a free throw by Kaila Jamerson.

Maura Gustine ended Kane’s mini run by sinking a 3-pointer from the left corner. Then, Erin Waskowiak scored off a steal to hike the hosts’ lead to 13-8 with 1:37 to go in the quarter.

“We work on our defense a lot,” Bishop Canevin coach Tim Joyce said. “We try to generate offense out of our defense. We have some long-armed, athletic kids, and that helps.”

Wilson drew her team to within three points, 13-10, at the end of one by hitting a short jumper off an inbounds play.

The teams traded baskets over the first three minutes of the second quarter before the Lady Crusaders went on an 8-1 run to open up their largest lead of the first half. Waskowiak’s trey from the right wing polished off the run and gave Bishop Canevin a 26-14 lead with 2:49 remaining before the half.

Waskowiak, a 5-10 freshman point guard, led all scorers with 15 points. She also had a team-high nine rebounds and three blocked shots.

“Erin’s a great player,” Joyce said. “She’s done that for us all year. It’s nice to know she’ll be with us for three more years.”

Jamerson ended Kane’s three-minute field goal drought by putting back her own missed shot. Jamerson added another basket and hit a free throw to bring the Lady Wolves to within eight points, 27-19, at the half.  

Things started off well for Kane out of the break, as Natalie Kossack opened the third quarter with a foul-line jumper to get the deficit down to six points. But the Lady Wolves would get no closer the rest of the way.

Already holding a 33-25 lead midway through the stanza, Bishop Canevin put the game away with a quarter-closing 13-4 run. Maddy McGuire led the Lady Crusaders during the spurt by scoring six of her nine points.

“Our defense keyed that run,” Joyce said. “We got some turnovers and got points off of them. We need to force turnovers because we’re not real good in our half-court offense. We like to try to get easy offense.”

Bishop Canevin, which held a 12-10 advantage in the fourth quarter, took its largest lead of the game with 5:44 remaining on Lisa Abbott’s short jumper that made it 52-31. Abbott finished with 12 points.

Drew Victory was a bright spot for the Lady Wolves, finishing with a team-best 10 points and a game-high 20 rebounds.

“Drew was a real force,” Kiehl said. “She’s a sophomore, and she’s come along.”

The loss ended the Lady Wolves’ season at 21-6. It was a season in which Kane won the Allegheny Mountain League title despite having had to replace the school’s all-time leading scorer Bree Bergman, who graduated in 2009.

“To be back here (in the state playoffs) again after what we lost last season, I’m very pleased with them,” Kiehl said. “Our future’s bright. We’ve got a lot of youth, but we’ve got a lot of work to do to compete.”

The game also marked the final contest for seniors Kossack, Walter and Emily Carlson.

“Those three seniors are going to be deeply missed,” Kiehl said. “They’re great kids. Their leadership is going to be missed. I just can’t say enough about them.”

Bishop Canevin (18-6) will now face District 10 champion Villa Maria at 8 p.m. Friday at Edinboro University’s McComb Field House in a first-round contest. The Victors, the defending Class AA state champions, have a 23-2 mark this season.

“We’re going to show up and do the best we can,” said Joyce, whose team starts three juniors and two freshmen. “They’re a great team. It’s going to be a good challenge for us.”

GAME NOTES: Jamerson, a freshman, had eight points in the game … Walter finished with 11 rebounds … Kossack blocked three shots … Freshman Carly Forse also scored in double figures for Bishop Canevin, netting 10 points … McGuire scored nine points before leaving the game midway through the fourth quarter with an injured left arm after diving for a loose ball on a steal attempt … The Lady Crusaders also struggled from the foul line, making just 7 of 13 free throws.

BISHOP CANEVIN 58, KANE 39

Score by Quarters

Kane                            10        9          10        10        -- 39

Bishop Canevin           13        14        19        12        -- 58

KANE (39)

Natalie Kossack 3 0-1 6, Kalie Walter 2 1-5 5, Andrea Saquin 3 0-1 6, Ashley Wilson 2 0-3 4, Drew Victory 3 4-6 10, Kaila Jamerson 2 4-8 8, Emily Carlson 0 0-0 0, Tina Mosier 0 0-0 0, Chandra Paup 0 0-0 0, Dawn Saquin 0 0-0 0, Audrey Perry 0 0-0 0, Angie Geer 0 0-0 0. Totals: 15 9-24 39.

BISHOP CANEVIN (58)

Maura Gustine 2 0-0 5, Dana Heidenreich 1 0-0 2, Maddy McGuire 3 2-5 9, Erin Waskowiak 7 0-2 15, Carly Forse 4 2-2 10, Lisa Abbott 6 0-0 12, Becca Olkosky 0 1-2 1, Celina DiPietro 1 0-0 2, Mia Merlina 0 0-0 0, Andrea Trombetta 0 2-2 2, Austen Tarabey 0 0-0 0, Haley Klein 0 0-0 0, Kelsey Rogers 0 0-0 0. Totals: 24 7-13 58.

3-point goals – Kane (none), Bishop Canevin (Gustine, McGuire, Waskowiak).

Rebounds – Kane 48 (Victory 20, Walter 11), Bishop Canevin 43 (Waskowiak 9).

Turnovers – Kane 34, Bishop Canevin 13.