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Boardman overcomes 10-point deficit against Harding girls
Gabriele’s 14 points,
pressure defense
power Boardman
By Steve wilaj
BOARDMAN
Down by 10 points to Warren Harding late in the third quarter of Thursday’s Division I sectional final, Boardman coach Jeff Hammerton took a timeout.
Then he issued a challenge to his girls.
“We said, ‘Look, this is the last time you seniors are ever gonna play [at Boardman High School],” he said. “Do you want it to be remembered as you’re going out and losing in the sectional final?’”
Quite simply, that’s not how the Spartans wanted to go out.
Rallying back from a double-digit deficit, third-seeded Boardman downed the sixth-seeded Raiders, 49-43, to advance to a district semifinal against Canfield. The Spartans (14-9) were led by Lauren Gabriele’s 14 points, while Krista Johnson and Jenna Vivo each scored 12 points as Boardman outscored Harding 20-10 in the fourth quarter.
“We just kind of realized that if we lose, we’re done,” said Johnson, one of eight Boardman seniors. “It was now or never and we all just kind of picked it up. We played better defense and figured out different ways to attack their zone.”
Harding (11-12) was paced by Shymara Dykes’ 15 points and 13 rebounds, while Kia Allen also scored 15 points. The Raiders, sparked by a 14-6 second quarter, led by two points at halftime and took a four-point lead into the final period.
“Shymara did a really good job,” Harding coach Frank Caputo said. “I think her effort tonight was amazing. She knew she had to put us on her back and I think she did that. But she wore down and had a little foul trouble at the end. But she kept us where we needed to be the whole time.”
After falling behind 31-21 in the third quarter, Boardman finished the period with an 8-2 flurry.
The contest was then tied at 41 with just 2:30 to go, before Vivo connected on two foul shots with 2:07 remaining. The score stayed the same until Vivo made two more free throws at the one-minute mark to push the Spartans ahead 45-41 and essentially ice the game.
“We ramped up the pressure,” Hammerton said. “We put a pressing unit on the floor.
“We thought if we could press and get some steals and easy opportunities, it might open up their zone a little bit and then we can attack better.”
While Harding committed 19 turnovers for the game, 12 came in the second half. Dykes also fouled out with just over two minutes to go, which didn’t help the Raiders’ closing efforts.
“We missed a couple opportunities and had a couple turnovers,” Caputo said. “We had a few in a row that got the momentum shifted the other way.
“This is a tough one. Jeff does a good job getting his girls prepared — they always do well in the tournament — and we knew he was gonna have them ready to go. That team never gives up.”
Dykes finished with eight blocks — a key factor that enabled Harding to nearly pull off the upset.
“They’re so tall and their length really hurt us because we’re a team that likes to drive it to the hole and get to the hoop,” Hammerton said. “Shymara kept blocking our shots, which gets a little frustrating.. ... So we had to adjust our game a little bit.”