Here, the Mount’s Taylor Sistrunk (left) is being fouled by Thomas Jefferson’s Alyssa DeAngelo, but the MSJ junior got into some foul difficulties of her own. (Photo by Tom Utescher)[/caption]

by Tom Utescher

Mount St. Joseph Academy’s unanticipated postseason run in basketball finally ended last Wednesday night in Chambersburg, Pa., where the team played a second-round game in the PIAA Class 5A state tournament. The 150-mile ride home seemed even longer than that to the Magic, who saw their season end with a 55-41 loss to Thomas Jefferson High School, a suburban Pittsburgh team that was the second seed coming out of District 7.

The Jefferson Jaguars (21-7) expanded a four-point lead at the end of the first quarter to a 32-18 halftime advantage, then kept their distance from the Mounties during a 23-23 second half. Sophomore Grace Niekelski scored 16 points and junior Lauren Vesey had 15 for the Magic, whose total was completed with six points from junior Kelly Rothenberg and four from senior Lauren Cunningham.

After losing in the semifinal round of Athletic Association of Catholic Academies tournament to runner-up Villa Maria, an overall record under the .500 mark resulted in the 12th seed for the Mount in the PIAA District 1 tournament. Here the Magic exceeded expectations, defeating the fifth seed, the fourth seed and then top-seeded Springfield (Delco) High School to reach the championship game.

In the title bout they lost again to Villa Maria, but as the second seed out of the district for the start of the state tourney, the Mounties bounced back to beat the fourth-seed from District 3, Solanco High School. Although the loss in the second round resulted in a final record of 14-15, the Mount went 8-6 over the second half of the season.

In Chambersburg last Wednesday, Thomas Jefferson scored almost half of its points on seven three-pointers fired by three different players. The Jaguars needed some production from the perimeter, since they were missing a 5’11” starting forward. That player, junior Dalaney Renallo, has made a verbal commitment to play soccer for Old Dominion University, and was away playing her primary sport at a Las Vegas showcase.

The team also has an athlete who’ll be playing Division I basketball in senior point guard Jenna Clark, who is headed for Yale. She deposited a game-high 18 points against the Mount, and close behind were junior Aylssa DeAngelo, with 17, and freshman Graci Fairman, with 16.

Thomas Jefferson’s Shaylor Williams (center foreground) tries to keep the ball out of the grasp of three Mounties, (from left) Grace Niekelski, Kelly Rothenberg and Paige Metzler. (Photo by Tom Utescher)[/caption]

With Renallo absent, the 5’9” DeAngelo was hitting the boards inside, while the small quick guards buzzed around out in the open floor.

Mount St. Joe’s Niekelski opened the game with a baseline jumper, then Jefferson went ahead for good as Fairman bagged back-to-back three-pointers from the right corner and Clark added a free throw. Clark’s trip to the foul line, coming less than three minutes into the game, resulted from the second personal foul called against MSJ junior Taylor Sistrunk. She would acquire a third before halftime, when Niekelski and Vesey each had two marks against them.

Niekelski complemented her opening jumper with a score on a drive and Rothenberg hit a layup in transition, but the Jaguars netted another free throw and a pair of threes, and were up 14-6 after five minutes. Cunningham, Vesey and Niekelski helped the Magic close up the score to 16-12 by the end of the first quarter, then the Jaguars pulled away again.

Clark’s first two three-pointers of the night helped them open up a 10-point gap (24-14) three minutes into the second period, and TJ continued to increase its advantage to lead by 14 at the half.

The Mount’s offensive transition worked best when one player dribbled the ball most of the way up the court, or when one Mountie rifled a long pass to a teammate running the floor. Otherwise, the quick Jaguar defenders were often able to create turnovers as they got their paws on MSJ passes.The two teams wound up matching one another 23-23 during the second half, although Thomas Jefferson’s lead reached 19 points late in the third quarter (43-24) and again in the fourth (53-34).