Upset bid falls short for Meyers

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SCRANTON — Kellie Nash’s free throws were just about all the offense Riverside could manage early.

In the end, the two foul shots Nash made with 9.8 seconds left finally clinched a 44-41 victory over upset-minded Meyers in the opener of a District 2 Class 2A girls basketball quarterfinal doubleheader at Scranton High School.

Nash went 9-for-10 from the line while scoring 19 points and grabbing six rebounds. She had nine points in the fourth quarter when Rebecca Mekilo had all six of her points as the Lady Vikes erased the last six points of what had been a 12-point halftime deficit.

Free throw shooting was a big part of the win. Riverside was 16-for-21 from the line while Meyers was 2-for-8.

First, however, the Lady Vikes discovered their touch from 3-point range.

“The thing we were most worried about coming into the game was the 3-point line,” Meyers coach Chris Gray said. “That was the base of our defense.

“For some reason in the first few minutes of the third quarter, we lost them.”

Madison Haduck had eight points in a 13-2 start to the second half.

Haduck and Taylor Berto each had two 3-pointers in the quarter, but Meyers pushed the lead back to 33-27 going into the fourth.

“All of a sudden they were right back in the game,” Gray said. “Obviously, that’s not the way you want to start the second half when you have all the momentum going.”

Meyers limited Riverside to six points in the final 12 minutes of the first half to take a 23-11 lead.

The Mohawks overcame five steals by Riverside’s pressure defense in the first quarter by hitting seven of their first 11 shots for a 16-9 lead in the opening seconds of the second quarter.

Nash, who was 6-for-6 from the line in the first half, hit two free throws with 7:19 left in the second quarter, but Riverside did not score again before intermission.

Amy Kowalczyk hit a 3-pointer in each of the first two quarters and had all 10 of her points in the first half for Meyers

Jazma Robertson had 10 points and 12 rebounds.

With the other Meyers inside players in foul trouble, Robertson had a big second quarter, stealing three entry passes, blocking a shot and grabbing three rebounds on the defensive end.

She then pulled in an offensive rebound and scored with a second left for the 12-point halftime lead.

Brianna Dimaggio added nine points, four assists and three steals for the Mohawks.

Mekilo had nine steals for Riverside.

 

MEYERS (41): Dimaggio 3 1-2 9, Kowalczyk 4 0-0 10, Biggs 3 0-0 7, Robertson 5 0-0 10, Winder 1 1-2 3, Soto 0 0-0 0, Moses 0 0-0 0, Martinez 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 2-4 41.

RIVERSIDE (44): Mekilo 1 4-5 6, Berto 2 2-3 8, Haduck 3 0-0 8, Donahue 1 1-3 3, Nash 5 9-10 19, Burnside 0 0-0 0, Keller 0 0-0 0, Buffton 0 0-0 0, Janesko 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 16-21 44.

Meyers149108—41Riverside921617—44