HYDE — One of the goals head coach Joey Castagnolo put up for his Lady Bison basketball team was to try and win out the remainder of the regular season from late-January through February. With the time for post-season play on the horizon, Castagnolo knew the time to peak was now.
Inside the Arthur J. Weiss Gymnasium Friday night, Clearfield stared across the court at the powder blue jerseys of the Central Mountain Lady Wildcats, the same team that beat them earlier in the year by a score of 50-37.
What the fans got in return was not just a spectacular game, but a game that Castagnolo would afterward call a “highlight reel” thanks to one player. Brianna Peters came onto the court and scored quickly in the first quarter, then did so again, and again…and again. In the first quarter alone, the junior scored 13 points, ending the game with a game and career-high 30 points as she led the charge to the 56-44 victory.
“I can’t remember the last time we had someone score 30,” Castagnolo said afterward. “Something about Bri (Brianna), when she starts off good, she gets that confidence. I’m just so proud of how everyone played tonight. From (Lisa) Ambuski’s two big 3’s, and Rachel (Thompson) threw some nice passes to Dakota (Farmery).
“Tonight was like a highlight reel. Save that and show kids this is how to play basketball.”
Peters may have been the highlight reel for the team as she also ended the night with nine rebounds, six in the first quarter, and three steals, but the rest of the team fed off that momentum. Farmery added another double-double to her total, ending the night with 10 points and 12 rebounds, while Kristen Butler added an additional 10. Thompson would end the night leading in assists with six, despite not scoring.
All did not go as planned for Clearfield, however. Despite ending the first quarter holding an 18-7 advantage, Central Mountain came back in the second quarter, switching to a press defense and holding the Lady Bisons to just two points in the quarter. The Wildcats would score 12 in the period to bring the deficit to just one heading into the break.
“The big thing about the second quarter, in the first quarter they couldn’t press us cause they weren’t scoring. Then they scored a few and got us on our heels,” Castagnolo said. “We’re not used to seeing zone presses, but we worked at it and yes we were a little tentative, but once we got accustomed to it we were just fine.”
The press worked as Hayley Lowery managed to put down six points in the quarter, ending the night with 10. But the big issue for the Lady Wildcats was their leading scorer, Sarah Jensen, was at three fouls at the end of the first half. That would play a factor later in the game.
The third quarter between the two squads saw a back-and-forth contest, with the lead swapping four times between the teams. The biggest lead Central Mountain had at one point was five points, as the team managed to score 16 in the eight minutes of play. But, Castagnolo noted that right at the end of the third quarter, having Butler block the final shot was a key point in the game, as it gave the team momentum heading into the final quarter.
Castagnolo noted that his biggest play, despite what Peters accomplished, came from Butler.
“I think when Butler got the ball and ran baseline to get Jensen her fourth foul, that changed the game. She’s not big, but she plays big inside,” Castagnolo said.
Eventually, with about three minutes left in the game, Jensen got her final foul, but ended the night with a team-high 11 points.
The junior varsity game also had Clearfield on the winning side by a final of 28-19.
Sitting at 14-7 on the year has Castagnolo smiling ear-to-ear, and even gave credit to the jayvee team for their contributions to the program.
“You know, we work hard and it pays off, and even the junior varsity is playing well,” Castagnolo said. “It’s important to the entire program because they are building the future. I just can’t say enough about all these kids.”
The Lady Bisons have one final regular season game this upcoming Monday night as they will play host to rival Curwensville. Tip off for the jayvee game is at 6 p.m. It is Senior Night and the five graduating players on the Lady Bison roster will be honored before the varsity contest begins.
See photos of the game here: http://www.ladybisonsports.org/lbsbball021012.html
SCORE BY QUARTERS
C. Mountain 7 12 16 9 – 44
Clearfield 18 2 17 19 – 56
Central Mountain 44
K. Walker 0 0-0 0, S. Walker 0 0-0 0, Lowery 3 3-4 10, Jensen 5 1-2 11, Rudy 0 0-0 0, Miller 0 0-0 0, Williams 0 0-0 0, Royer 1 0-0 2, Smith 5 0-0 10, Garbrick 1 0-0 3, Heverly 1 0-0 3, Gilmore 0 0-0 0, Kitner 0 0-0 0, Nyman 0 0-0 0, Myers 2 1-2 5. Totals 17 5-8 44
Clearfield 56
Butler 4 2-4 10, Spencer 0 0-0 0, Renaud 0 0-0 0, Munshower 0 0-0 0, Farmery 4 2-2 10, Ambuski 2 0-1 6, Thompson 0 0-2 0, Mumma 0 0-0 0, Peters 9 12-14 30, Sheeder 0 0-0 0, Sopic 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 14-21 56
Field Goals Made/Attempted: CM-17/55 CF-19/40
Team Rebounds: CM-23 CF-36
Team Fouls: CM-13 CF-4
Turnovers: CM-11 CF-20
Three-Point Shots: CM-Lowery, Garbrick, Heverly; CF-Ambuski (2)
Foul Outs: CM-Jensen; CF-None
Lady Bison Scoreboard:
| Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| 12/14 | @ Huntingdon | 68 – 89 | 0 – 1 |
| 12/19 | PUNXSUTAWNEY | 60-55 2ot | 1 – 1 |
| 12/21 | @ Central | 46 – 37 | 2 – 1 |
| 12/23 | @ Bellefonte | 55 – 30 | 3 – 1 |
| 12/28 | @ Curwensville | 57 – 38 | 4 – 1 |
| 01/04 | TYRONE | 38 – 47 | 4 – 2 |
| 01/06 | @ Punxsutawney | 55 – 68 | 4 – 3 |
| 01/09 | BROOKVILLE | 63 – 55 | 5 – 3 |
| 01/10 | PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA | 71 – 37 | 6 – 3 |
| 01/12 | @ DuBois | 57 – 45 | 7 – 3 |
| 01/14 | @ Penns Valley | 59 – 45 | 8 – 3 |
| 01/17 | @ Central Mountain | 37 – 50 | 8 – 4 |
| 01/20 | BALD EAGLE AREA | 61 – 55 | 9 – 4 |
| 01/24 | HUNTINGDON | 72 – 48 | 10 – 4 |
| 01/26 | ST. MARYS | 51 – 55 | 10 – 5 |
| 01/27 | @ Juniata | 59 – 53 | 11 – 5 |
| 01/30 | PENNS VALLEY | 58 – 41 | 12 – 5 |
| 02/01 | CENTRAL | 62 – 65 ot | 12 – 6 |
| 02/03 | @ Tyrone | 31 – 60 | 12 – 7 |
| 02/08 | @ Philipsburg-Osceola | 49 – 44 | 13 – 7 |
| 02/10 | CENTRAL MOUNTAIN | 56 – 44 | 14 – 7 |
| 02/13 | CURWENSVILLE |
