ICL Senior tops 1,000 points

Anna Marie Ricciardi helped Western Reserve defeat McDonald.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
BERLIN CENTER -- When Anna Marie Ricciardi walks down the Western Reserve High hallways, she sometimes passes the board showing the all-time girls basketball scoring record.
"I just happen to look occasionally," she said with a laugh.
Ricciardi knows the record by heart -- Diana Smith, 1,245 points, set from 1985-88 -- and while she doesn't want to put individual goals ahead of team goals, she admits she thinks about breaking it.
"Yeah, since my sophomore year," said Ricciardi, who won a Division III state title in the high jump last spring.
Ricciardi inched closer on Monday, scoring her 1,000th point -- and a few more for good measure -- to lead Western Reserve to a 72-61 victory over Inter-County League rival McDonald.
"Just hearing 'ICL' gets us pretty pumped up," Ricciardi said. "We need to be ready to play every night. We want to win the league."
She did her part, recording a quadruple-double (the first of her career) with 29 points, 13 rebounds, 11 steals and 10 assists as the Blue Devils (6-1, 3-0) kept pace with unbeaten Lowellville in the league race.
Reserve has never won an ICL girls basketball title.
"She's the gas in our engine, the pep in our step," Western Reserve coach Eric Kalina said. "When we need a bucket, we give the ball to her."
Passing the mark
Ricciardi entered the game with 995 points. She scored two quick baskets, then, with 4:25 remaining in the first quarter, stole the ball, drove coast-to-coast and laid the ball in to pass the milestone.
Play stopped, and she received hugs, handshakes, a standing ovation and -- after the game -- an autographed game ball by her teammates.
"They stopped the game and I said, 'Oh my gosh, I just did it,' " Ricciardi said with a smile. "It was nice, but I felt kind of stupid just standing there."
Her basket capped an 11-0 run to start the game -- a deceptively easy start, as it turned out.
McDonald answered with a 12-2 run and trailed just 16-12 after the first quarter. Reserve led by as many as 13 in the second quarter and took a 30-21 halftime lead.
McDonald was hampered by poor shooting all night, hitting just 4-of-34 (12 percent) from the field in the first half and 17-of-65 (26 percent) overall.
McDonald stayed close for much of the second half. Amy Dolsak hit four second-half 3-pointers as McDonald -- which made seven 3-pointers -- cut its deficit to 64-58 with a minute remaining.
But that's as close as it got.
"How many 3-pointers did they hit tonight?" Kalina said, shaking his head. "My gosh, I didn't expect that."
Leaders
Dolsak led McDonald (4-3, 1-2) with 21 points and seven steals. Freshman Ashleigh Tondo and senior Brittney Thompson each added 10 points.
Western Reserve senior Jen White scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds and senior Mikah Berger added 10 points and six rebounds.
"They caught us by surprise," Berger said. "But we regrouped and started playing as a team."
Ricciardi and Berger combined to score 12 of Western Reserve's final 14 points. It's no surprise they play so well together -- they're best friends.
"She has definitely grown over the years and become a great team player," Berger said of Ricciardi. "She has great team spirit and whenever our team makes mistakes, she keeps her head up. She has a real positive attitude."
scalzo@vindy.com