Bishop Feehan surges late, holds off Cathedral

BOSTON >> In another tough test, Bishop Feehan used a late surge against Catholic Central League opponent Cathedral during a girls basketball clash Tuesday night.

With only a 50-47 advantage, the Shamrocks scored the final 12 points to put away the Panthers 62-47 on the road to bring their current win streak to three.

“(My girls) showed some fortitude and stuck together,” said Bishop Feehan coach Amy Dolores. “(Cathedral) is a tough place to play. It was a tough team that is fast and aggressive. They pressured us and we weathered the storm. They did it together and it was great to see.”

Sophomore Charlotte Adams-Lopez (nine points) scored the first five of the run and Sammy Reale finished it off with five of her nine fourth-quarter points to keep Cathedral (12-4) from keeping it close.

“(Reale) has been that for us all season long and I am not surprised she kept it up for us today,” Dolores said about her senior captain. “She has been a great leader for us and has been a scorer when we have needed it. She has been a huge contribution.”

Reale finished with 27 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Shamrocks.

Bishop Feehan (14-3) built a 14-point lead in the third after a threepointer for sophomore Madelyn Steele went down. The Panthers kept their aggressive style of play and cut the lead down to 46-40 after three.

From there, Cathedral knocked down a couple threes to start the fourth to make it a one possession contest. The defense then took over as Bishop Feehan held the Panthers scoreless over the final four minutes.

“We definitely did a better job on the defensive (glass),” Dolores said about her team stepping up on the defensive side of the ball. “(Cathedral) hurt us on the offensive glass early.”

In the first half, neither team had clear control as they exchanged six lead changes and two ties with the Shamrocks up 15-12 after one.

Cathedral kept it close throughout the second quarter, but a late threepoint play for junior Julia Webster (15 points) helped push the lead to 29-24 at the half.

“Julia really found her shot with the shot at the end of the second quarter,” said Dolores. “With that shot, she really found confidence in her shot and she rode that through the second half. It’s really huge for us when she plays like that.”

For the Panthers, sophomore Hijjah Allen-Paisley netted 12 points and freshman Keyona Raines added 11 points. The loss snapped a five-game win streak for Cathedral.