The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Titans set record with 18th victory of season
Senior Barricklow ties school mark with five 3-pointers in win over Firelands
Riding a school record 11game winning streak, the Lorain girls basketball team continued to rewrite the record books Feb. 10 against Firelands.
The Titans won their 18th game of the season, setting a school record, and senior Mackenzie Barricklow tied a program record with five made 3-pointers in a 56-47 win over Firelands.
“Honestly I felt really off in warmups,” she said. “So it felt good when I started making them. I just kept shooting, because my coach kept telling me, you better keep shooting or you’re going on the bench.”
Despite what Barricklow described as a less-than-stellar warmup, she opened the game
hot with nine of Lorain’s first 11 points.
The Falcons closed that deficit to four with a minute and change left in the second quarter. But turnovers and a lack of defensive rebounding held them back from getting any closer.
It was a theme all night, as what was a six-point lead in the third quarter felt insurmountable for Firelands because of turnovers.
“We shot ourselves in the foot,” Firelands head coach Dave Kudela said. “Every time we got close to tying it up, we would make two or three mistakes in a row. Give Lorain credit, I thought they played harder than we did all night long.”
“...It felt good when I started making them. I just kept shooting, because my coach kept telling me, you better keep shooting or you’re going on the bench.”
— Lorain’s Mackenzie Barricklow
A 7-2 run in the fourth quarter brought Firelands within five points, but again turnovers, followed by an offensive rebound and putback from Lorain’s Imani Thomas, snuffed out any momentum the visitors had.
Despite being the shorter team, the Titans outrebounded their opponents all night, using their athleticism in the post to beat the Falcons to their spots.
“It wasn’t quite what they’re used to seeing in their conference as far as athleticism,” Lorain head coach Mark Feldmann said. “We can get to that spot a little quicker than what they’re used to.”
Isabella Zvara led the Falcons with 13 points, while Megan Sutton, who hit five free throws in the fourth quarter to help inch Firelands within five, finished with 11.
Having already clinched the Lorain County League title, Firelands sets its sights on the postseason and the Division II Elyria District. The Falcons are the third seed, behind Rocky River and Bay, which are similar athletically to what they saw at Lorain.
“We picked Lorain to play at the end of the year because we know that they’ve got really good athletes and this year they’ve got really good athletes that also have skill,” Kudela said. “Hopefully it’s going to get us ready for our Division II tournament.”
Lorain has clinched at least a share of the Lake Erie League title. It can win it outright on Feb. 12 against Warrensville Heights on senior night. Despite the fact that they’ve been on a roll since December, it’s fair to wonder if the Titans are peaking at the right time.
“I think it’s safe to say we’re peaking at the right time, but we want to keep peaking on (Feb. 12) because it’s a championship game,” Feldmann said. “But I think we’ve been playing well for a while, but we haven’t leveled off. So I think it’s been consistent.”
Senior Destiny Evans was the only other Titan in double figures with 11.
Firelands closes their regular season with a conference game against Black River on Feb. 12.