GIRLS BASKETBALL New Castle stops Laurel Highlands in WPIAL opener

The Red Hurricanes posted a 55-44 victory.
By BILL ALBRIGHT
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
PITTSBURGH -- Sometimes in basketball, you are just glad to get off the court with a win.
That was the feeling of New Castle High girls basketball coach Luann Grybowski after she watched her Hurricanes advance to the second round of the WPIAL Class AAAA playoffs with a 55-44 win over Laurel Highlands.
"It is nice to get the win because now we advance to the next round," said Grybowski. "But make no mistake about it, I wasn't real pleased with some of the things I saw out there tonight."
New Castle started strong as the Hurricanes opened a 10-point lead less than five minutes into the game.
"I wasn't pleased in the first half," Grybowski said. "We went up by 10 and then turned right around and let them back into the game."
Struggle at foul line
Poor free throw shooting let the Fillies back into the game. Laurel Highlands converted on 8-of-9 from the stripe in the first half, while New Castle could only show four points in 12 attempts.
"That [free throw shooting] has been a thorn in our side the second half of the season," said Grybowski. "When we lost to North Allegheny, we were 10-for-20. We lost to Butler and were 5-for-16.
"I don't know what it is because this team shot 75 percent in the first half of the season," she added. "Usually that beats you, so tonight, we were fortunate to be able to overcome it."
Ashley Wise, who tied Jalessa Sams for game honors in scoring with 15 points, came up big down the stretch for the Hurricanes, scoring six of her points in less than two minutes.
Wise leads way
With Laurel Highlands still hanging close, Wise got free underneath for two lay-ups, then stepped in and stole a pass for an uncontested bucket.
"I was just reading her eyes and took a chance that she was going to pass it back," Wise said. "When I saw the pass coming, I just stepped in front of it and that made it easy."
Laurel Highlands tied the game on its first possession of the second half. But following the 24-all deadlock, New Castle scored eight straight points on buckets by Wise, Sams, Natalie Wallace and Jaleah Robinson.
Entering the fourth period, Robinson got a wide open look and buried a 3 to stretch the New Castle lead back to double digits, and the Fillies never threatened again.
"I knew we needed to get something to keep us going and I am just glad that I was able to hit it," said Robinson, who scored 10 points. "It picked us up, got us in a good run and I am just glad that I could do it for the team."
The Hurricanes hadn't played for 11 days, since their loss to Butler to close out the regular season, and Robinson said the layoff may have helped.
"We needed rest because our legs were shot," Robinson said. "We were sore, so it gave us time to stretch and work on our legs as well as do some halfcourt work on our offense. I think it helped us prepare for this game and the games coming up."
Also qualified for state
The Hurricanes not only advanced to the second round of the WPIAL tournament, they also qualified for the state tournament.
For the Fillies, Kayla Ashton (15), Lauren Mahoney (14) and Hallie Cupp (13) all scored in double figures. With a free throw in the third period, Mahoney went over the 1,000-point career scoring plateau.