Tigers rebound
PAWTUCKET – Bella Russell had a lot on her mind when she awoke Thursday morning.
First, she already had started thinking about she and her Tolman teammates facing Pilgrim that night, and how important recording a victory would be for the Tigers’ post-season hopes.
Second, and more obvious, she knew it was her 17th birthday, so she admitted being excited about her day – and night – might bring.
It’s unknown what gifts she received, but one meant more than any other: She netted a critical 12 points, not to mention five steals, four rebounds and four assists, to pace the Tigers to a wild, 52-44 victory over the Patriots at the James W. Donaldson Gymnasium.
Russell not only drained a pair of long-distance treys to keep Tolman close early in the second half, but also nailed two buckets during a 13-1 surge in a three-minute span later, to catapult her squad to 8-2 in league play.
Pilgrim, quite the gritty opponent, fell to 5- 3 in D- III.
“I’m feeling great right now, plus it’s my birthday,” Russell grinned afterward. “That was a crazy, physical game, and I’m tired, but I’m also thrilled. This being my birthday, that pumped me up, but I was also thinking about last year, when Pilgrim beat us in the regular season.
“That was not going to happen today; there was no way I was going to let it happen,” she added. “I knew (when they started to rally early in the second half) that I had to step it up, so I did.”
Call that a massive understatement, though she did have some help.
By the time it ended, sophomore K’lani Gaul notched a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds, as well as four steals and three blocks, while senior captain Thania Santana added 14 points, nine assists, five boards and three thefts; junior Jaz Wilson three points, six rebounds, three steals and three feeds; and classmate Zaniah Vaz with three points.
Freshman Abryanna Encarnacion didn’t score but did contribute seven boards, four thefts and three assists.
For the Pats, junior Alysia Medeiros earned 15 points (nine from Treyland), while senior Nadine Ogni netted 11 and the junior-senior duet o Jenna Gustafson and
Sara Langevin six each.
With 7:31 remaining in regulation and Tolman trailing 35-32, coach Walter (“Bunky”) Gonzalez called a timeout and informed his charges that they were in an “OK” position, but that any further mistakes they made would be magnified. He also told them that this was a playoff atmosphere, just as the state D-III title tilt had been approximately 11 months ago, and that should embrace the tension.
In essence, he explained that how they responded this time would go a long way in how it would later on come post-season action.
Exactly 49 ticks later, at the 6:42 mark, Santana hit a backdoor layup to slice the deficit to 35-34, and – following a Pilgrim turnover (one of 36 in the game) six seconds later – Zaniah Vaz dropped a foul shot to tie it at 3535.
After those, Gaul hit a putback, Russell a short jumper, Gaul a baseline hook, Russell a baseline 10-footer and Santana a baseline 16-footer to push the lead to 45
35 with 3:42 left.
Because of that 13-1 flurry, Pilgrim never got more than eight points closer, as Santana planted four of six “freebies” in the final 2:30 to ice it.
“They’re a pretty tough team, so that’s what makes this so exciting,” Gaul stated. “I was onJV last year, so I technically wasn’t a part of the (regular-season) loss, but I know that made us mad. That gave me more confidence this year.”
As for her contributions in the final stanza, she said, “I had to do it for my team. I had to do the best I could because none of us wanted to lose.”
The Tigers finished with only 22 turnovers, which for them is a respectable number, though 12-for-28 from the charity stripe isn’t.
Defensively, the hosts were supreme in the opening session, as it held Pilgrim scoreless at one point for 7:36. That’s why it went into the break up only 18-16.
“We need to work on those things, turnovers and foul shots, but I thought the difference was Bella Russell,” Gonzalez offered. “She hit two big threes to keep us close, and that kick-started our offense, but it also sparked our defense. We weren’t getting clean looks down low in the first half, so we wanted to try to open it up outside.
“That’s where Bella comes in,” he added. “She did a great job of hitting those open shots, and K’lani worked down low and grabbed some huge boards … This is a huge win for us. It’s always a big match-up for us with Pilgrim because they’re a tough out.”
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PILGRIM (44) – Alysia Medeiros 6 0-0 15, Nadine Ogni 2 6-6 11, Sara Langevin 2 2-2 6, Jenna Gustafson 3 0-0 6, Kate Burr 2 0-1 4, T. O’Connor 1 0-0 2, Tatyana Boiano 0 0-2 0, Jayni Williams 0 0-0 0, Hannah French 0 0-0 0; totals 16 8-11 44. TOLMAN (52) – Bella Russell 5 0-0 12, K’lani Gaul 8 2-6 18, Thania Santana 3 8-11 14, Zaniah Vaz 1 1-2 3, Liziana Vaz 0 0-0 0, Minelle Pagan 1 0-0 2, Abryanna Encarnacion 0 0-3 0, Jaz Wilson 1 1-4 3, Ashley Percy 0 0-0 0, Kamea Medina 0 0-0 0, Shayanna Barros 0 0-0 0, Nariah Washington 0 0-0 0, Chelsea Young 0 0-0 0; totals 19 12-28 52. Three-point field goals: Medeiros 3, Ogni, Russell 2. Halftime: Pilgrim, 18-16.