SPC wins at its pace

By DAN GENOVESE
Published February 13, 2005

TAMPA - St. Petersburg Catholic used size and a slow tempo to capture a 54-39 win over the Academy of Holy Names.

St. Petersburg Catholic juniors Robin Lina and Katie Keegan used their size advantage to combine for 27 points, most coming in the paint.

"They tried double and triple teaming them early," said Barons coach Nick Vanderwall. "We just remained patient and worked the ball inside until we got some good shots."

St. Petersburg got the lead early with a 10-0 first quarter run, led by sophomore Anna Keegan who had all of her points in that span.

"Anna's (Keegan) first few shots were key for us," Vanderwall said. "It got our offense off to the start we wanted."

Jaguars' sophomore Gianna Messina led the team with 18 points, while junior Dana Esposito added 13. Holy Names used its speed to create turnovers, but was unable to get any points in transition.

"They are a very fast team," Lina said. "When we turned the ball over we wanted to make sure they wouldn't score on the break."

The Jaguars were never able to get into a rhythm offensively, being forced out of the paint by Lina and Keegan.

"We wanted to slow down the pace in the game," Vanderwall said. "We controlled the tempo of the game tonight, which gave us the chance to win."

PALMETTO - After enduring an offensive funk for much of the evening, Lakewood finally burst from its shell early in the final quarter.

But by the time the Spartans awoke with an energetic 14-2 run that cut into Bradenton Southeast's robust lead, the Class 4A, District 13 title game was all but over.

The Seminoles (21-6) built an 18-point lead with six minutes remaining and held on for a 37-30 victory Saturday night.

"Southeast has established a great tradition," said Lakewood coach Necole Tunsil, whose team fell to 19-7, "but I think we came in respecting that entirely too much."

Lakewood, which scored just seven in the first half, got six from Kquanise Byrd and four from Jazmyn Shorter during a 31/2-minute spurt that brought the Spartans to within six with 2:15 to go.

"Our team didn't recognize, until it was too late, that we were just as good as they were," Tunsil said.

Shorter and Byrd each scored 10 points for Lakewood. The Spartans outscored Southeast 16-11 in the fourth quarter.

The Seminoles, who won their sixth consecutive district title, had three players score in double figures - Shatoyia Blue (15), Cherrelle King (12) and Casey Baker (10).

- THE BRADENTON HERALD

[Last modified February 13, 2005, 01:08:17]