Lady Trojans lose a heartbreaker in OT, 43-41
Lori C. Padilla
California鈥檚 Makayla Boda goes up for a shot against Clairton鈥檚 Iyanna Chapman (23) during Friday鈥檚 WPIAL Class A quarterfinal playoff game at Charleroi High School.
California's Charlee Petrucci looks to the basket as she is defended by Clairton's Iyanna Chapman (33) during Friday's WPIAL Class A quarterfinal playoff game at Charleroi High School.
FALLOWFIELD TWP. 鈥� California saw its WPIAL playoff run come to an end in painful fashion Friday night with a 43-41 overtime loss to Clairton in the Class A quarterfinals at Charleroi High School.
鈥淭his is a heart-breaker,鈥� said California coach Chris Niemiec. 鈥淭he girls battled back after we were down, and we had the lead in overtime.
鈥淲e scrapped, but it just wasn鈥檛 enough tonight.鈥�
The Lady Trojans (13-11) still have a chance for the PIAA playoffs as one of the six WPIAL teams should Clairton advance to the Class A championship.
The Lady Bears took a three-point lead twice in the last five minutes only to have California tie the game.
California鈥檚 Ca鈥橫ari Walden fouled out with 1:24 remaining and her absence was felt the rest of the way.
鈥淲hen she fouled out, it hurt us,鈥� Niemiec said. 鈥淲e aren鈥檛 deep and she has been key to our success.鈥�
With California down 37-34, Sydney Smichnick hit a 3-pointer with 29 seconds left in regulation to tie the game.
Both teams hit a pair of free throws in the closing seconds and the game went into overtime.
The Lady Trojans scored first in the four-minute overtime period, but the Lady Bears outscored California, 4-0, the rest of the way to avenge a Jan. 16 loss at California.
The Lady Trojans had their chances to win the game with six missed shots after securing five offensive rebounds in the closing 30 seconds of overtime, including a Smichnick shot that bounced off the rim three times with six seconds to go.
Niemiec spoke about his seniors, pausing to regain his composure as he became emotional talking about his squad.
鈥淭hey weren鈥檛 our best players, but they had our biggest hearts,鈥� he said in a trembling tone. 鈥淏ut, I am proud of this team.
鈥淗ad you told me during the preseason that we would be in this position, I would have taken it. This hurts now, but the girls will look back and be proud of what they did.鈥�
California battled all night and played from behind most of the game.
Down 10-5 after one quarter, the Lady Trojans managed to stay in the game with their full-court press. They forced fourth-seeded Clairton (20-3) into 12 turnovers in the first quarter, but California gave the ball away 10 times itself in the frame.
The turnovers were a recurring theme all night as Clairton turned the ball over 36 times and California returned the favor 28 times.
鈥淥ur press has a dual effect,鈥� said Niemiec. 鈥淚t causes turnovers, but it also took them out of their comfort zone. They couldn鈥檛 rebound because they were scrambling.鈥�
California outrebounded Clairton, 37-34, despite the size disadvantage.
The Lady Bears opened the biggest lead of the game, seven points at 12-5, to start the second quarter, but California fought back and only trailed 19-15 at halftime.
Clairton鈥檚 advantage could have been bigger at the break, but it only made 1-of-9 free throws in the first half.
California鈥檚 Makayla Boda began to take over late in the third quarter as she scored the Lady Trojans鈥� final five points to tie the game at 24-24 going into the fourth quarter.
Boda kept her momentum alive by scoring the Lady Trojans鈥� first six points of the fourth quarter, helping California to its first lead of the game with 6:45 to play in regulation when she hit a layup.
鈥淢akayla had an amazing game tonight,鈥� Niemiec said. 鈥淪he lost a contact late and played the rest of the way with one eye, but she turned it up in the playoffs.鈥�
Boda finished with 18 points and eight rebounds, while Clairton鈥檚 Taylor Jackson matched her with 18 points. The Lady Bears鈥� Iyanna Chapman finished with a game-high 14 rebounds.