HYDE — When Lady Bison Head Coach Joey Castagnolo looked at the stat book, his expression was one of bewilderment. He stared at two pages of baskets, wondering what he just witnessed.
Entering the final contest of the year, the Clearfield girls wanted to finish the season on a strong note, as their young team looked to build on a great final week and look forward to next year. The final game of the year would come against the Lady Eagles of Bald Eagle Area, who themselves also have experienced a tough year, and wanted to spoil the final night of the home-standing team.
The first half saw the teams going back and forth, neither giving in. But the Lady Bison turned on the momentum in the third quarter, putting up a lead that got the crowd electrified.
Then all of a sudden, it ended. The final eight minutes were some of the most shocking the Clearfield fans, coaches, and players had ever seen. In that final quarter, the Lady Eagles nearly quadrupled the amount of points scored, and shocked the Lady Bison in the season finale, taking home the win by a final of 59-46.
After the game, Castagnolo sat on the bleachers, looking at the stat book, almost looking as if he had just seen a car accident.
“I’m just so frustrated. We imploded in that fourth quarter,” Castagnolo said. “We were up 39-33, and we just didn’t play smart. We’re a much better basketball team than that. I just don’t know what happened.”
In the first half, the two squads would swap the lead on many occasions, with no lead getting above six points. After one quarter, Bald Eagle was up just one, and entering the half were just up by two. But, coming out of the break, Clearfield took the opening in-bounds pass and began working the opposition. An early bucket by Emily Ryan tied the game, then after a swap of the lead on two occasions, Maggie Sopic nailed a jumper to put the Bison in the lead for good. It would then be followed up by Brianna Spencer hitting one of her two three-point shots to extend the lead to near double-digits.
After the third quarter, the six-point lead looked strong, and even got extended to 11 points early in the quarter. But suddenly, it just evaporated. The Lady Bison then were committing turnovers, many unforced, and Bald Eagle capitalized.
The big hit to the Lady Bison that took a lot of the air out of their sails were two huge three-point shots by Matie Single, both of which banked in despite looking like they would be short.
“Three quarters we played good. I don’t understand what happened,” Castagnolo said. “I think the back-to-back three’s just demoralized us, but I just don’t know.”
All five starters for the Lady Eagles hit double-digits in scoring, with Hayley Giedroc leading with 13 points, and also adding six rebounds. Logan Fischer accounted for a team-high eight boards.
Clearfield had Spencer, Emily Aveni and Rachel Glenny all account for 10 points a piece, with Glenny pulling down a game-high nine boards. But even with all the strong stats, Castagnolo just couldn’t fathom what he witnessed in the gymnasium.
“We just lost confidence. I tried to give them some rest, but I don’t know if we were focused or what,” Castagnolo said. “I’ve just never seen us play like that.
“I’m at a loss for words.”
Clearfield won the opening junior-varsity contest by a final of 26-19.
The Lady Bison end the year with a 4-18 record, but as Castagnolo sat, staring at the stat book, he continued to try and figure out what he just witnessed. His eyes were as wide as golf balls, no smile, but a look of mere confusion. It seemed as if it was a combination of knowing the season was over, and seeing a game that appeared to be well in hand disappear in just one quarter.
“I didn’t want the season to end this way. To be outscored 26-7 in the final quarter, that’s just…I’m just shocked,” Castagnolo said.
NOTES
-The Lady Bison honored senior Brianna Spencer before the game as part of Senior Night.
-The final game of the season was also “Pink Out” night, honoring breast cancer. Donations were made at the ticket stand, and also via a bake sale, raffle for two baskets, and a half-court shot at halftime. Half of the money raised went to the mother of one of the Lady Bison players battling cancer, with the other half being donated to the Susan G. Komen For a Cure charity.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Bald Eagle Area 14 12 7 26 – 59
Clearfield 13 11 15 7 – 46
Bald Eagle Area 59
Peters 4 3-5 12, Giedroc 5 2-2 13, Single 4 2-3 12, Chambers 4 3-4 11, Fischer 4 2-4 10, Ward 0 1-2 1. TOTALS 21 14-20 59.
Clearfield 46
Castagnolo 1 0-0 2, Spencer 3 0-1 8, Ryan 4 2-3 10, Waring 0 0-0 0, Riddell 0 0-0 0, Lash 0 1-2 1, Aveni 4 2-2 10, Sopic 3 4-5 10, Glenny 2 1-3 5, Aycock 0 0-0 0, Ishman 0 0-0 0, Ireland 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 17 10-16 46.
GAME STATISTICS
Bald Eagle Area/Clearfield
Field Goals (Made-Attempted): 21-55/17-48
Team Fouls: 14/18
Turnovers: 22/24
Rebounds: 23/27
Final Lady Bison Scoreboard:
| Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| @ Brookville Tip-Off Tourney | |||
| 12/06 | vs. Brookville | ppd. | 0 – 0 |
| 12/07 | vs. Brookville | 18 – 45 | 0 – 1 |
| 12/07 | vs. North Clarion | 47 – 38 | 1 – 1 |
| 12/11 | CENTRAL | 35 – 54 | 1 – 2 |
| 12/13 | HUNTINGDON | 23 – 39 | 1 – 3 |
| 12/16 | @ Punxsutawney | 24 – 66 | 1 – 4 |
| 12/17 | @ Bald Eagle Area | 39 – 32 | 2 – 4 |
| 12/20 | BELLEFONTE | 25 – 27 | 2 – 5 |
| 12/27 | @ Curwensville | 46 – 50 ot | 2 – 6 |
| 01/03 | PUNXSUTAWNEY | 39 – 63 | 2 – 7 |
| 01/08 | @ Tyrone | 41 – 60 | 2 – 8 |
| 01/10 | PENNS VALLEY | 33 – 42 | 2 – 9 |
| 01/15 | @ Philipsburg-Osceola | 57 – 60 | 2 – 10 |
| 01/17 | @ St. Marys | 32 – 36 | 2 – 11 |
| 01/21 | @ Central | ppd. | 2 – 11 |
| 01/23 | CENTRAL MOUNTAIN | 45 – 28 | 3 – 11 |
| 01/24 | @ Huntingdon | 29 – 34 | 3 – 12 |
| 01/28 | BALD EAGLE AREA | ppd. | 3 – 12 |
| 01/30 | @ Central | 42 – 64 | 3 – 13 |
| 01/31 | @ Bellefonte | 22 – 35 | 3 – 14 |
| 02/04 | TYRONE | 42 – 62 | 3 – 15 |
| 02/07 | @ Penns Valley | 24 – 35 | 3 – 16 |
| 02/10 | CURWENSVILLE | 42 – 47 | 3 – 17 |
| 02/11 | PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA | 53 – 30 | 4 – 17 |
| 02/14 | BALD EAGLE AREA | 46 – 59 | 4 – 18 |