Dragons ratchet up defense
Glenelg Country advances to playoff showdown with top-seeded Mount de Sales
After holding Annapolis Area Christian to just three field goals in the first half, the Glenelg Country girls basketball team might have gone into halftime feeling as though it should have had a bigger lead in Wednesday’s Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland B Conference quarterfinal.
But the host Eagles’ offensive production wasn’t much better in the second half, and the Dragons extended their lead in the third quarter and pulled away for a 47-31 victory.
Glenelg Country School (13-10), the No. 5 seed, advances to face top seed Mount de Sales in a semifinal on Friday with a berth in Sunday’s championship game on the line.
“I think we just did a little better on the defensive end and we had a better game plan,” Glenelg Country coach William Harper said, referring to the difference between Wednesday’s game and the Dragons’ six-point victory over AACS early in the season. “We just made shots and we ran the floor a lot better.”
Caroline Haynes led all scorers with 12 points, including a pair of 3-pointers in the first minute of the second half. She also scored in transition in the final seconds of the third quarter to help the Dragons take a 15-point lead to the fourth.
“My teammates really helped get me open,” Haynes said. “We did a screen and roll, and I really think that helped me. We practice that a lot, so I felt confident in that shot. It was a good momentum shift.”
Fourth-seeded AACS (12-10) shot just 3-for-33 from the field in the first half. Reniyah Ross, held scoreless in the first half, scored all seven of the Eagles’ points in the third quarter and accounted for four of the team’s five second-half field goals.
“We just didn’t shoot the ball well. Wehad good looks in the first half,” AACS coach Jim Domoracki said. “I told them at halftime, there’s no way we’re going to shoot 9 percent in the second half, but I bet we weren’t far off. There are some nights where you just can’t hit shots.”
While no other players were in double figures, Ashlyn Bender, Brianna Chun and Taylor Gillis each scored seven points for the Dragons. Bender scored all of her points in the second quarter, including five quick points that put her team back ahead after the Eagles took a short-lived one-point lead.
Mount de Sales, which advanced to Friday’s semifinal with a 42-33 victory over St. Timothy’s on Wednesday, won the teams’ regular-season game, 49-36. The Sailors haven’t lost in the conference and enter Friday’s game on a 12-game winning streak.
“I just think we really just have to keep up the energy,” Haynes said. “Keep rebounding and keep playing great defense. I think it will all work out.”
Ross, who was honored before the game for recently scoring her1,000th career point, led the Eagles with 10 points. She joined Morgan DeBeary (six points) and Ky’ara Olfus in playing the final games of their careers on Wednesday.
“Give credit to Glenelg Country,” Domoracki said. “They did what they needed to do to close out the win. I tip my cap to them.”