By HUNTER O. LYLE
lyleoleanstar@gmail.com
CLARION, PA – In a night where their offense just couldn’t find their footing, the Otto-Eldred girls’ basketball team fell short in the District 9 Class A Finals, losing to DuBois Central Catholic 46-29.
Separated by nearly 80 miles, the Lady Terrors and Lady Cardinals met only once during the regular season. In that matchup, on Tuesday, Feb. 4, O-E pulled out an upset, double-digit win in hostile territory. Since then, both squads have stormed through the regular season. O-E entered the postseason holding the second seed in Class A, while DCC finished at No.1, enjoying a bye through the first round of competition. Making their way through the bracket, a rematch became inevitable.
“We were loose. We had high hopes, high expectations I think,” said Otto-Eldred head coach Shawn Gray of his team in the locker room before the game. “We were ready to go.”
Getting the ball off the tip, the Lady Terrors would crack the ice first, scoring from a layup from Carrie Drummond. From there, however, they would be subjected to DCC’s high-octane pressure. Implementing a full-court-press and double-team traps in the half court, the Lady Cardinals forced multiple O-E turnovers but were unable to convert in transition.
As both teams struggled to take the lid off the rim, DCC would take a slim 5-4 advantage with just over two minutes remaining. Focusing on the long ball late in the quarter, the Lady Terrors would take back the lead at the buzzer, with Baylee Francis getting fouled on a 3-pointer and sinking two of her three charity shots. At the end of the first, O-E led 6-5.
Baylee Francis takes a shot from beyond the arc during the Lady Terrors’ 46-29 loss to DuBois Central Catholic in the D9 finals. Francis would end with five points in the loss. | Photo by Hunter O. Lyle
Both teams would find success in the very beginning of the second, with Jahden Smith hitting the Lady Terrors’ first 3-pointer of the game and DCC scoring via the fast break and at the free throw line. At the six minute mark, the game would be knotted at 9. However, from there, the Lady Cardinals took over.
Looking to get out and run, DCC utilized outlet passes to spark consecutive fastbreaks, helped by numerous O-E turnovers. Coupled by their work in the post and under the offensive glass, the Lady Cardinals scored nine unanswered points to pull ahead by seven.
Meanwhile, the Lady Terrors just couldn’t find any production on offense. Deterred in the paint by a collapsing zone defense, O-E’s jumpers consistently missed their marks as they went scoreless for over four minutes.
“I don’t know if it was nerves or what it was but we just didn’t execute at all. (DCC) has some bigs underneath and they went to a zone where they could just park their big girls underneath,” said Gray. “We haven’t played well against zone defenses for whatever reason.”
With just over a minute left, Francis would break the dry spell with a 3-pointer and split trip to the line, but the Lady Terrors’ fifth turnover of the quarter would kill their momentum and allow a buzzer beater DCC score. Going into halftime, O-E looked up at a 20-13 deficit.
Turnovers would handicap the Lady Terrors in the second half, starting with one on their first possession. Giving up two in the ensuing minutes, along with several missed opportunities in close, O-E would see the Lady Cardinals spark another run, this time at a 7-0 clip. Struggling to get past the imposing pressure, O-E wouldn’t find their first point until halfway through the third – another split trip from the free throw line from Francis ended a four minute drought.
After their score, the Lady Terrors would once again go quiet while DCC scored six more unanswered points, pulling away by 16 in the final minute. Although they tried multiple defensive schemes, from 2-3 zone to man-to-man to 1-3-1 zone, O-E couldn’t find an answer to the Lady Cardinals’ attack.
Down by 14 entering the fourth quarter, the Lady Terrors would be at the mercy of DCC’s pressure. Suffering constant turnovers, including back-to-back giveaways in their first two possessions and seven in the fourth quarter altogether, O-E’s offense would grind to a halt. Meanwhile, the Lady Cardinals would put their foot on the gas, scoring inside and out as they solidified their grip on the Class A championship.
“(DCC) did a really good job defending but I thought if we had gotten the ball in the right spots, we could have gotten some open 3s or gotten to the rim and gotten them to foul us a little more,” said Gray. “Give (DCC) some credit but I thought we had a lot to do with our demise here tonight.”
As the clock wound down, O-E’s desperation only fed the Lady Cardinals. Panic set in in the form of forced shots and sloppy passing before they ultimately accepted the outcome. While their underdog season had brought the Lady Terrors to the finals, they would leave empty handed.
Drummond would lead her team in scoring with 10 points while Rayel Hakes ended with six. Lexi Prince and Francis finished with five each in the loss.
Jahden Smith sparks a fast break with a steal during Otto-Eldred’s loss to the Lady Cardinals on Saturday. | Photo by Hunter O. Lyle
Win or loss, neither team’s seasons would have come to an end as they both had already secured a spot in the upcoming PIAA State Tournament. Coming in as the second seed from D9, O-E will face Geibel Catholic, the fourth seed from District 7, while DCC will take on Bishop Canevin (D7-6). Both games will take place at home on Saturday, March 8.
Although they lose their core senior leadership in Drummond and Addie Bell, O-E brings back a swath of young talent, including Francis, Alya Van Scoter, Hakes and Prince and although the sting of another championship loss will stay with them, the Lady Terrors are optimistic about the future.
“Losing those two seniors is going to be tough. The senior leadership alone is a big thing. The experience that those two have, they’ve been in three D9 title games now so you can’t buy that experience, you’ve got to be here and do it,” said Gray. “We’re going to be experienced but we’re still going to be somewhat young next year. What we’re going to lose the most is just the leadership those two brought.”
AT CLARION
Otto-Eldred (29)
Drummond 3 2-3 10, Hakes 3 0-2 6, Prince 2 0-0 5, Francis 1 2-4 5, Smith 1 0-0 3. Totals: 10 4-9 29
DuBois Central Catholic (46)
Jacob 5 3-5 13, Em. Elensky 4 2-3 10, Sebring 4 2-2 10, El. Elensky 4 0-0 9, Hanes 0 2-2 2, Morgan 1 0-0 2. Totals: 18 9-12 46
Otto-Eldred 6 13 19 29
DuBois CC 5 20 33 46
Three-point goals: O-E (4) Drummond 2, Francis, Smith, DCC (1) El. Elensky; Total fouls: O-E 11, DCC 9; fouled out: None.
