GIRLS BASKETBALL Rayen uses 'D' to stop Poland

The Tigers rallied to hand the Bulldogs their second loss in three games.
By GREG GULAS
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
POLAND -- Erica Wilson scored 16 points, Taniesha Holland and Ashley Myers added 12 and 11, respectively, as The Rayen School knocked off Poland, 44-41, in a girls basketball game Monday.
"We haven't played in 10 days and that had me concerned," Tigers (4-2) coach Holly Seimetz said. "We played slow and at times looked lethargic, missing too many open shots.
"Credit our kids, though, as they kept fighting, playing excellent defense all night."
Poland (4-2) has lost two of its last three games.
Holland staked the Tigers to a 6-0 lead, scoring four of her game-high 16 points at the outset. She added another basket in the quarter, as the teams battled to a 14-14 deadlock in the first eight minutes.
An Erica Wilson bucket at the 4:34 mark of the second period gave Rayen a 19-16 lead, causing Poland coach Jamie Dunn to yank all five starters in favor of his bench, looking to ignite an offense that could not get untracked all night.
His strategy seemed to work for the moment as the Bulldogs tied the game at 23 when Erin Hawkins sank two free throws with 28 seconds remaining before intermission.
With one second remaining in the quarter, Holland buried a 3-pointer to give the Tigers a 26-23 lead at intermission.
"The team that deserved to win tonight, won," Dunn said.
"They played harder and executed better and I commended both the coaches and players on a job well done," he added. "I'm disappointed in that we aren't playing like I feel we should be playing right now. Take nothing away from Rayen, though, as they played a great overall game."
Back and forth
A Taryn Carlson lay-up with 1:54 remaining in the third quarter gave Poland a 32-30 lead, the Bulldogs taking advantage of a scoring drought by Rayen that lasted 4:04, to outscore the Tigers 7-2 during that span.
When Myers hit a bank shot with just five seconds remaining, she knotted the score at 32-all heading into the final quarter of play.
Steffi Graf's goal from beyond the arc gave the Bulldogs their largest lead of the game at 41-37 with 3:42 remaining, but it turned out to be the final score of the game for Poland as Rayen reeled off the final seven points of the game to seal the victory.
The Bulldogs connected on just 16-of-52 shots from the field, but the Tigers were not much better (18-of-57).
Poland held a 45-35 advantage on the baords as Lauren Umbel hauled in a game-high 12 rebounds for the Bulldogs.