Mooney finds offensive juice in fourth quarter to beat McDonald

By Brooke meenachan

bmeenachan@vindy.com

youngstown

You’ve seen the whole senior night spiel: players walking hand-in-hand with their parents down the court, underclassman giving out balloons and roses, pictures being taken at half-court and crowds cheering extra loud and sometimes with handmade signs for the players who have put in in their four years.

But for the seniors on the Cardinal Mooney girls basketball team, Monday night was extra special.

Taylor Martin and Lauren Markovitch were just freshman when Erica Wilson took over as head coach. Now in their fourth year playing for Wilson, she’s sad to see them go.

“It’s extra special. This is the first time it’s happened to me as a head coach. They mean a lot to me. They’re not just the players that get the points or the rebounds on the floor. They’re my loudest and most encouraging people in practice,” Wilson said.

Taylor Martin was more than appreciative of her head coach.

“It’s really emotional, but really special to know I have had the same coach still supporting me throughout four years,” Martin said.

Martin led the Cardinals with 15 points in their 52-42 win over McDonald.

Martin and Markovitch don’t normally get the same amount of minutes, but Markovitch proved her best on senior night.

“She came in big. She got a lot of rebounds for us and was solid inside,” Wilson said.

Her teammate and co-senior echoed her coach. “Lauren really stepped up and came to play. She definitely showed she deserves to be on the floor.”

Mooney’s defense is what really outperformed in Monday’s contest as they held McDonald to just 11 points at the half.

“We tried to pressure them. We have a lot of good defenders on our team,” Wilson said. “We tried to shake it up and keep them on their toes and have to keep changing their offense.”

Their strategy worked. The Cardinals forced more than 20 turnovers from the Blue Devils.

“Our press is probably our strongest thing. We’re really good about helping each other and help defense is really strict in us,” Martin said.

The Cardinals let up on their full court press in the fourth quarter, which allowed McDonald to stick around.

Mooney led by as many as 12 points with 4:34 left. That’s when McDonald’s Olivia Perry got to work.

Perry made a layup and drew a foul to cut the Cardinals lead to eight, but Markovitch found Martin off a fast break to put the Cardinals back up by double digits.

Perry responded with two buckets and a foul shot to put the Blue Devils within six.

Conchetta Rinaldi, who finished with 11 points, netted a basket then hit two foul shots to extend the Cardinals lead back to 10.

But Perry made things interesting. She pulled up at the top of the arc and drained a 3-pointer.

“Olivia had a spark in her. When she sets her mind to it and is aggressive, she can score anyway she wants to. She’s a threat when she wants to be,” McDonald coach Amy Dolsak said.

Perry was passive in the first three quarters. She scored 16 of her 21 points in the final eight minutes, but it wasn’t enough to lead McDonald to a comeback win.

“She’s a sophomore. She’s still learning,” Dolsak said. “We’re starting to see more and more of that and hopefully it sticks with her.”

With tournament time quickly approaching, Dolsak likes to see games like Mooney at the end of their schedule.

“It was a good game for us overall. We’re disappointed with the turnovers, but we’ll take it and learn from it,” Dolsak said. “It’s good to play these types of games, especially at the end to prepare us for what’s to come.”

While each team prepares for the playoffs, Mooney’s Wilson, Martin and Markovitch will also have to prepare for their final games together.

“I’ve been here with [Coach Wilson] her four years. It’s going to be hard to say goodbye,” Martin said.

Wilson hopes she has some players to take their place.