The Archbishop Spalding girls basketball team poses for pictures… (Baltimore Sun photo by Algerina…)
February 20, 2011|By Katherine Dunn, The Baltimore Sun
Archbishop Spalding senior Maggie Morrison doesn't often show emotion on the basketball court, but after scoring the last five points to secure the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland A Conference championship Sunday night, she let out a victory yell and leaped into the arms of teammate Sherae Swinson.
Morrison scored the game-winning layup with 40 seconds left and then hit three of four free throws to seal a 53-48 win over No. 5 Seton Keough for the No. 1 Cavaliers' first A Conference title since 2002 before a standing-room-only crowd at Goucher College.
"It's hard to explain the feeling. My heart's pounding more now than it was in the game," Morrison said with a laugh 15 minutes after the game ended. "We've been working for this for four years. It's been nine years since we won the last one, and this is a huge accomplishment for us, especially the seniors."
The Cavaliers (27-2) led by 14 points after Brya Freeland's 3-point play to end the third quarter, but the Gators (19-8) rallied behind two seniors, guard Rianna Frazer and All-Metro forward Achiri Ade. The duo combined for the first eight points of the quarter, cutting Spalding's lead to 44-38 on Frazer's spinning bank shot with 5:05 to go.
The Gators kept rolling into the final two minutes as Amber Singletary's driving layup and Ade's layup off a feed from Liz Brown brought them within one, 48-47. Aaliyah Wilson's free throw tied the score at 48 with 40.7 seconds left.
Then Morrison, an All-Metro guard headed for Vanderbilt, took over. She drove through traffic for a layup with 40.7 seconds to go and hit one free throw with 19.5 left for a 51-48 Cavaliers lead.
Frazer, who had hit three 3-pointers, tried to tie it with a 3-point shot over Morrison, but it rimmed out. The Gators fouled Morrison, who sealed it with 2.2 seconds left when the first of her two free throws bounced up twice off the rim and fell in.
"In the fourth quarter, our turnovers and our defense [let Seton Keough back in the game]," Morrison said. "We weren't running our offense, and we were dead, dog-tired and we couldn't get back on 'D.' They're a great team. We knew they were going to make runs. Basketball's a game of runs. It's just whose defense can withstand it."
The Gators hit two more field goals than Spalding, but the Cavaliers were more efficient at the free-throw line, hitting 15 of 25 while Seton Keough went 5-for-13.
Gators coach Jackie Boswell, whose team won the A Conference title in 2009, was pleased with her team's senior leadership in the comeback bid.
"We told the seniors they had to start stepping up," Boswell said. "It's got to be a senior show out there. I'm really proud of the way we didn't give up. … Our seniors showed a lot of composure, as they have all season."
Frazer led the Gators with 15 points while Ade had 10 points and six rebounds and Brown had nine points and 13 rebounds.
In addition to Morrison's 19 points, coach Bookie Rosemond's Cavaliers got their usual steady games from seniors Brya Freeland (10 points), Shaquilla Curtis (eight points, 12 rebounds) and Swinson.
B Conference
Notre Dame Prep 47, John Carroll 44: The Blazers won their first conference title since 1999, holding off a furious Patriots rally that cut a 13-point lead to 45-44 with 1:06 left. Sydney Tommins' layup with 4:03 left held up as the game-winner, and Mary Kate Conway (17 points) sealed the victory with a steal and a layup with two seconds to go to break a run of nine straight Patriots points. Miranda Ripken led John Carroll with 12 points.
C Conference
St. John's 59, Catholic 38: The Vikings won their second straight C Conference title behind 13 points from Mariel Pierce and 11 from Christine Hagan. Early on, 6-foot-3 sophomore Hagan gave Catholic a lot of trouble in the paint, scoring four points and adding an assist as the Vikings (15-1) ran their lead to 10 early in the second half and extended it to 17 by the end of the third quarter. Lindsay Torbeck led Catholic (13-2) with 13 points.
A Conference
1 Spalding 53, 5 Seton Keough 48
SK—Frazer 15, Wilson 2, Singletary 6, Ade 10, Brown 9, Hines 4, McCormick 2. Totals 20-5-13 48.
SP—Freeland 10, Makins 4, Swinson 2, Curtis 8, Morrison 19, Calhoun 3, Epps 4, Chestnut 3. Totals 18 15-25 53.
Half: SP, 26-20.
B Conference
NDP 47, John Carroll 44
NDP—Healy 1, Stanwick 10, Quinn 6, McKenna 3, Conway 17, Tommins 10. Totals 17 13-20 47.
JC—Soller 5, Wolfe 10, Edwards 2, Cluine 10, Johnson 5, Ripken 12. Totals 16 9-14 44.
Half: NDP, 29-16.
C Conference
St. John's 59, Catholic 38
C—L.Torbeck 13, Winborne 12, Abrams 5, Pope 1, Bynum 5, C.Torbeck 2. Totals 12 12-20 38.
SJ—Truxillo 5, Jones 4, M.Pierce 13, Greene 7, Hagan 11, B.Pierce 6, Wilson 2, Rimel 4, Barrientos 7. Totals 24 10-19 59.
Half: SJ, 28-20.
