Poland upends Canfield in classic Metro battle

Free throws came into play in the final minutes.
By BRIAN RICHESSON
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
POLAND -- The Canfield and Poland high school girls basketball teams confirmed Saturday what many already knew: This Metro Athletic Conference rivalry is still hot.
Poland rallied from a 13-point first-half deficit against last year's state semifinalist and won 55-50 at Poland High.
"We tell our kids that it's not about wins and losses. It's about getting better as a team," Canfield coach Pat Pavlansky said. "We felt we became a better team today."
Pressure player: Junior Taryn Carlson made four key free throws down the stretch to provide Poland with the victory. She tied the score 49-49 with two free throws and added two more with 56.9 seconds remaining to give Poland the lead for good.
"This is a good game for us," Poland coach Jamie Dunn said. "This is a game you can build on because if you're down early the kids begin to believe you more."
Prior to Carlson's only points of the game, however, Canfield (7-3, 1-1) and Poland (7-1, 2-0) waged a classic MAC battle.
"We get after each other," Pavlansky said. "The kids play real hard on both sides."
Canfield junior Kelly Williams needed an ice pack on the back of her head after wrestling Poland junior Kristy Gaudiose to the floor in a third quarter battle for the ball.
Hard play continued in the fourth. Canfield senior Erin Martin and Poland senior Julie Gallo had to be separated, while Martin was the recipient of a hard fall by Poland freshman Katherine McGarry.
Gaudiose was steamed after being fouled hard by senior Nicole Vlajkovich, who scored 10 points for Canfield, as Gaudiose went in for a layup in the final minute.
Rally begins: When the fourth quarter began, Canfield led 41-34, but Poland rallied behind the play of Gaudiose and Gallo and the team's accuracy at the foul line. The Bulldogs made 17-of-21 attempts for the game.
The 6-foot Gallo did her damage on the inside, scoring eight of her 20 points in the fourth quarter. Gaudiose also finished with 20 as the Bulldogs prevailed after three fourth-quarter ties.
"I thought our kids created opportunities for themselves in the second half," said Dunn, whose team out-scored Canfield 21-9 in the fourth quarter.
Cardinals in control: In the first half, Canfield seemed set on responding to a Thursday night loss to Ursuline. The Cardinals broke out to an 8-0 lead and were ahead 20-11 to begin the second quarter.
With Martin scoring 17 of her game-high 22 points in the first half, Canfield pushed its lead to 30-17 with 2:20 remaining before halftime.
"I can't remember the last time somebody put 17 on the board against us in a half," Dunn said.
Martin, however, didn't have the same success in the second half.
"They took her away by denying her the ball, and we didn't do a good job of trying to get her open," Pavlansky said.
With Poland ahead 51-49, Canfield had one final chance to tie when Williams went to the foul line for two shots with 46.7 seconds remaining. She missed both.
"I tell our kids at practice, 'Don't be short on your free throws,' " Pavlansky said. "She wasn't short. It [the first shot] was nice and straight, just a tiny bit long. I don't mind having Kelly Williams at the line. Trust me."
richesson@vindy.com