Big second half propels Tigers to win

Dec. 9—RANDOLPH TOWNSHIP — Maplewood outscored Conneaut 33-19 in the second half to win a non-region battle 53-38 at Maplewood on Thursday.

The game was back and forth in the first half. Neither team gained an advantage and combined for 21 turnovers.

At halftime, Maplewood held a slim 20-19 lead.

"I thought we could have played better in the first half. We did not make them work hard enough on defense," Conneaut head coach Christine Krankota said. "We would make one or two passes and then put a shot up. We rarely reversed the ball or worked it around. They didn't have to exert a lot of energy defensively and that worked to their advantage in the second half."

Coming out of halftime Conneaut opted for its full-court press defense. It forced Maplewood into a couple turnovers but once the Tigers settled into the flow of the game they earned points in transition.

The Tigers ended the third quarter on a 13-4 run and led 40-29 entering the final quarter.

"When they pressed we had gone over that extensively because in the JV game they pressed. So I had an idea of what they were doing and we explained to them we will get through the press if we pass the ball," Maplewood head coach Shawn Rhoades said. "I think we passed it well and got some easy transitions. We hit a couple threes and that got everyone calmed down in this group."

Hitting from beyond the arc was Bailey Varndell. She made three 3-pointers in the game and added five steals. Getting to the hoop in transition was Sadie Thomas. The 1,000-point scorer finished with 13 points.

The fourth quarter was more of the same. When Conneaut was in a full-court press the Tigers passed out of it. Conneaut did make a run at Maplewood but never came closer than 11 points.

A key difference was rebounding.

"Our boxing out was hit or miss and in the second half our boxing out disappeared. I think we got out-rebounded by 12 or 14," Krankota said. "You just can't do that against a good Maplewood team. We allowed them too many second chance points."

The second chance points helped Maplewood stay ahead despite shooting 10-25 at the free throw line.

"We need to improve that — but like I told them at halftime, 'we didn't play a good half of basketball but we're still up. Let's clean it up and get after it on both ends,'" Rhoades said.

Maplewood moved to 2-1 overall with the win. Varndell scored a game-high 16 points. Rhaelynn Koelle added 10.

The non-region game won't help Class 2A Maplewood in the region standings but playing bigger schools like Class 4A Conneaut will help prepare them for the region schedule. Maplewood plays at Class 4A Grove City on Monday for another non-region matchup.

"That's a scrappy team. They exposed a lot and we have things to work on," Rhoades said. "It's a good non-region schedule because the region is going to be tough. Even if you don't win this game it doesn't hurt you in the long run. It's a good gage for us."

Conneaut is in the same boat. Krankota's Eagles have just three upperclassmen. Without a region game until mid-January, she is hoping the non-region schedule can help prepare her young team.

"Our inexperience shined through but we need games like this in order to get better," Krankota said. "We have a heavy sophomore and freshmen class and if we don't have these experiences now there is no way for us to build because these girls need to be exposed to things. This was a great game for us at the beginning of the season."

Conneaut is 2-2 overall. Lainie Harrington led the Eagles with 14 points. The Eagles will host Union City on Monday.

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Conneaut (38)

L. Harrington 6 2-3 14, Poff 3 2-2 8, Brady 2 2-3 6, Detelich 2 2-2 6, Ca. Perrye 2 0-0 4. Totals 15 8-10 38.

Maplewood (53)

Varndell 6 1-2 16, Thomas 5 3-5 13, Koelle 4 2-4 10, S. O'Hara 1 4-4 6, Means 2 0-0 4, Eimer 1 0-3 2, M. O'Hara 1 0-0 2, Banik 0 0-2 0, Vergona 0 0-4 0, Despenes 0 0-1 0. Totals 20 10-25 53.

Conneaut;11;8;10;9;—;38

Maplewood;11;9;20;13;—;53

3-point goals: Maplewood — Varndell 3.

Records: Maplewood 2-1, 0-0 Region 2; Conneaut 2-2, 0-0 Region 5.

Alex Topor can be reached at (814) 724-6370 or by email at atopor@meadvilletribune.com.