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Howard’s end
McDonald’s ace strikes late to deliver league crown
By BOB ETTINGER
McDONALD
Everybody in McClary Gymnasium knew who was supposed to have the ball in her hands for the final shot, including McDonald’s Molly Howard.
Once the ball was in Howard’s hands, however, everything changed as the seconds ticked away.
Instead of passing off to teammate Olivia Perry, Howard dribbled toward the free-throw line and let loose with a jumper, sending it through the net with six seconds to play in overtime for a 56-55 victory over Western Reserve on Monday to keep the dream of an unbeaten season alive for McDonald.
“To be honest, Liv was supposed to get it,” Howard said. I knew time was running down and I had to get a shot off.”
McDonald (17-0, 13-0 Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference) had to overcome a 55-51 deficit over the final 1:27.
“It shows a lot of grit for our team,” McDonald coach Amy Dolsak said. “We had moments when we were up and we had moments when we were down. It showed a lot of grit for the girls to stick it out. I’m proud of them for that.”
The win gives McDonald the league crown.
Western Reserve (16-2, 11-2) went ahead in the extra period after Olivia Pater and Alyssa Serensky scored. Howard knocked down a 3-pointer with 40 seconds to play to bring McDonald to within a point, 55-54.
Western Reserve missed a free throw with 19 seconds to play, but McDonald turned the ball over 10 seconds later in trying to get the ball to Perry out near the wing.
Serensky, trying to inbound the ball to avoid a five-second call, threw the ball the length of the floor. Nobody was able to run it down, giving McDonald possession along the baseline setting up the game-winner.
“We showed resiliency,” Western Reserve coach Steve Miller said. “We had the momentum in the third quarter and I was feeling good about things.
“McDonald is undefeated for a reason,” Miller said. “They’re a good team. Usually, I keep a timeout in my pocket, but I screwed myself and, unfortunately, it was down to the players at that point.
“As a coach, you always say a game doesn’t come down to one play, but I know Alyssa feels terrible. I feel terrible for her. The girls feel terrible for her.”
Perry finished with 23 points, Howard had 15 and Sophia Costantino chipped in with 10 for McDonald.
Vuletich’s 22 points paced Western Reserve. Serensky had 14 and Kennedy Miller added 10.
McDonald took a 17-10 lead into the second quarter and pushed it to 24-12 with 5:06 to play in the half behind Perry, who netted 17 points in those first 11 minutes of action.
“Olivia knocked down some big shots in the first half,” Dolsak said.
Serensky tallied six points and Danielle Vuletich added four more as Western Reserve used a 10-2 spurt over the final three minutes of the second to get within a pair, 28-26, at the break.
Perry knotted the score, 49-49, with 3:08 remaining in regulation.
“We knocked down some big shots,” Dolsak said. “One of our goals for the season was they wanted to be league champs. We had to keep reminding them of that to help them to fight through the tough times. When the girls really want something, they’ll fight to get it.”
Vuletich sent the game to overtime with a bucket with 32 seconds remaining.