After being defeated by Mt. Healthy by 19 points during the regular season, Parkside girls coach Clint Moore knew he had to have a different game plan in the rematch with the Eagles in the championship game of the Elementary Basketball League tournament.
Much of that game plan involved slowing down Mt. Healthy’s Hadassah Hurt. The Pirates were able execute Moore’s game plan just enough to pull out a 28-26 victory to capture the title against the defending champion Eagles.
“We came in with a different game plan this time. Most of it had to do with stopping Hadassah because she’s a great player. We played a box-and-one on her and had four different girls guard her,” Moore said.
Although Hurt was able to net 18 points, it was not enough for Mt. Healthy. Kyleigh Wolf, Charley Kerber and Grace LaSell led the charge on the offensive end of the floor for Parkside, combining for 25 of the team’s 28 points. Wolf led the trio, scoring a team-high 12 points.
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“We came in confident with our game plan,” Wolf said. “We knew we had to play harder and get to the lane and draw some fouls. But we were focused and came in with the right mindset and won a close game.”
After ending the first quarter with a 10-6 lead, Parkside went cold and could not find the net and were shut out in the second quarter. That did not affect the Pirates’ defense, however, and they trailed by only one point heading into halftime.
The second half saw a continued defensive battle, with neither team able to pull away or score effectively. Although Parkside only scored seven points in the quarter, they held the Eagles to just four and headed into the final period with a two-point lead.
LaSell stepped up for the Pirates offensively, scoring all six of her points in the second half. As the fourth quarter progressed, it was evident that the championship battle was going to be closely fought to the end. With the clock winding down, Parkside did just enough to outlast Hurt and Mt. Healthy and escape with a two-point victory and a sense of revenge.
