Ramblers end Red Hurricanes’ season
Cathedral Prep rallies to tie score in fourth and force an overtime
A historic season for New Castle came to an end in an instant Friday night inside the Red Hurricanes’ storied home gym.
After a back-and-forth defensive battle that saw New Castle held under 50 points in regulation for the first time all season, Cathedral Prep (17-7) escaped with a 52-50 overtime victory in a dramatic PIAA Class 5A quarterfinal game. The Red Hurricanes (21-3) led by seven points with less than two minutes remaining, but Cathedral Prep rallied to force overtime with a tying shot in the final seconds of regulation.
Senior Sheldon Cox led all scorers with 18 points for New Castle, while junior Mike Wells contributed 13. Sophomore Khali Horton scored a team-high 16 points for Cathedral Prep, while seniors Will Innes and Liam Galla finished with 14 and 11, respectively
“We knew they were going to make runs,” said Cathedral Prep coach Steve Piotrowicz. “I think our pace of play, they struggled with it a little bit. … These kids, they just wanted it. They don’t want to stop playing basketball right now.”
The Red Hurricanes captured a record 14th WPIAL championship this season, giving coach Ralph Blundo seven WPIAL titles in 11 years at the helm. Although his team lost in heartbreaking fashion Friday, Blundo said he considers the season an overwhelming success.
“You just tell them how much you love them and how proud you are of them and how hard they fought,” Blundo said. “The year they had — this is disappointing, but you’re in the [state] quarterfinals and you’re playing against a good team. We just didn’t quite play well enough, and you’ve got to credit Prep.”
The game got off to a surprisingly slow start, especially considering New Castle’s scoring prowess. The Red Hurricanes ranked fifth among all WPIAL teams going into the game with an average of 72.3 points per game, but Cathedral Prep gave them fits with its defense by running them off the 3-point line, where New Castle typically thrives.
Cathedral Prep led, 10-5, after the opening quarter, then the Red Hurricanes began battling back. Innes nearly drained a running 3-pointer just before the halftime
buzzer, but his shot rimmed out and Cathedral Prep took a 23-20 lead into the break.
Cox nailed a 3-pointer to give New Castle its first lead of the game, 30-29, midway through the third, and the teams went into the final quarter tied at 32-32. Back-to-back baskets by Cox midway through the fourth, including an and-one layup in the paint, gave the Red Hurricanes a five-point lead.
New Castle led, 44-37, with less than two minutes to play, but Cathedral Prep came racing back to tie the score. Innes started the run with a 3-pointer, then a jumper by Galla in the paint with less than five
seconds remaining sent the game to overtime.
“He’s been making big plays for us at the end of games all year, and he did it again tonight,” Piotrowicz said. “I couldn’t be prouder of him.”
Wells made a tough layup to give the Red Hurricanes a 50-49 lead with two minutes left in overtime, but New Castle couldn’t get another shot to fall. Cathedral Prep tied the score from the free-throw line, then took the lead after Wells was called for an intentional foul while diving for a loose ball.
Wells had a chance to tie the score at the
buzzer with a runner after driving the length of the court, but he couldn’t quite get a clean look, and the put-back by Michael Graham was just a split-second too late.
“They’re the best defensive team we’ve played all year. There’s no question about that,” Blundo said.
“They made it hard for us. We just needed to get one stop there at the end [of regulation] with four seconds to go, and we didn’t get it.”