HYDE — Taking to the basketball court has been fun this year for the Lady Bison of Clearfield. They have won, lost, grown closer and worked together to make themselves better as a unit. But often, one game means more to the team than any. That game is usually Senior Night, because it is the final time some teammates will take to the court to compete alongside their friends with their parents watching.
Before taking to the court to play, those in attendance got to honor Margo Castagnolo, Sam Rockmore, Emily Ryan and Rachel Glenny. Tears came from their eyes, but quickly had to be wiped away as competition was approaching. That competition was coming from the Lady Mounties of Philipsburg-Osceola, a team looking to avenge a stunning loss to Clearfield one month ago.
Emotion would be a key factor in the early part of the game, and would flow through all four quarters. It seemed to be a blowout, but late in the going that changed.
It was Clearfield that got the early lead, only to see the Lady Mounties storm back. Yet late in the going, the home squad began roaring back, and came right on the cusp of the lead. Opportunity after opportunity knocked, and even with a late charge to the basket, it never went the right way. In the end, the tears of sadness that started the night would flow once again as the Lady Mounties would halt the comeback in a 51-49 thriller.
Head coach Joey Castagnolo was in disbelief of what he saw, but knew exactly when things began going wrong in the game.
“In the beginning we were so flat because of emotions of Senior Night. That carried into the first quarter way too long. We were missing shots we normally never miss,” he said while shaking his head. “The girls played their hearts out, and we just came up short.”
To start the game, Clearfield would get out to a 5-0 run. But after the first three minutes, it went awry. Philipsburg-Osceola would get things rolling with the combination of Halle Herrington and Cheyanne Bone. They would combine for seven baskets and get things going in the scoring, which continued into the early second quarter. Until Glenny hit a low post bucket with just over five minutes left in the second quarter, P-O had gone on a 17-0 run.
But Herrington would sit most of the second quarter as she got into foul trouble. By halftime she had been tagged three times, but still had eight points. Her night would end with 13 points.
Meanwhile, Clearfield would struggle to find the basket on many occasions in the second quarter, but it was the coach’s daughter that suddenly brought them back. Margo would hit back-to-back-to-back three-pointers to pull Clearfield to within four, but as halftime hit they were still down 28-20.
The eight-point deficit remained after three quarters, but it all built up to yet another incredible fourth quarter from both squads. It was another case of the game not being over until the final buzzer, because Clearfield suddenly began playing at a lot different tempo, putting the pressure on P-O and making them play a different style, one that Castagnolo credits for getting them back in the hunt.
“We got more aggressive on defense because they were willing to pass and dribble along the perimeter. That really turned the game around,” he said.
Ryan and Glenny would show why they were the leaders of the offense, as the two would feed off of each other, both in baskets, assists and rebounds. Glenny had her best home game of the year saved for the final night as she would have a game-high 20 points, and then tacked on an impressive 20 rebounds.
“She had an incredible game, but just missed a couple of shots,” Castagnolo said of his senior center. “Imagine if she would’ve made more shots.”
Ryan would have an incredible night of her own, also having a double-double as she would add in 11 points, 10 boards, and would finish one assist shy of the triple-double.
Late in the going, P-O found themselves in a bit of trouble because Herrington would end up fouling out with nearly half the final quarter remaining, taking away a lot of offense from the Lady Mounties. But, where one player is lost, another simply steps in to lead the way. On this ocasion, Haylee Hayward would have a field day in the final quarter, as she would score seven of her co-team high 15 points in the final frame. Bone would be the other one with 15 points.
But the fourth quarter was all about the play of Clearfield to bring themselves back into it. They would pull to within one point, and have many opportunities to tie the game. Castagnolo would go to the line for a one-plus opportunity, but would miss the shot, and P-O would get the rebound. But then after P-O would get a couple baskets, Ryan and Glenny would pull the team right back into it.
It was back-and-forth down the court and the crowd was feeding off the play of the teams, and likewise the teams could feel the crowd getting into it.
Clearfield had one final opportunity late in the game to force the two teams to play just a little bit longer. Bone would go to the line for her second free throw of the quarter, having already made the first. With just over 18 seconds left, her shot fell short, and Ryan then took the rebound and began to sprint as if she was on the soccer field instead of the hardwood. She would thread through defenders, and go in for a layup.
The basket missed. Glenny would get the rebound and go for the put-back, and it missed. Both teams knocked the ball around for a few seconds before Hayward would find the rebound. Three…two…one…buzzer. The P-O bench would ignite a celebration, while across the court the home squad ended up moments short of a comeback. Some were crying, a couple saw anger, and each wore those emotions on their sleeve.
Castagnolo saw his team come from being 12 points down to just on the cusp of tying it up, and could see the change in the girls from how they were playing. At the same time, as well as they were playing, some items did not go their way.
“We executed properly down the stretch. But we weren’t getting calls, the girls got frustrated, but we got in our press, but then they burned us,” Castagnolo said. “We had the opportunity down the stretch, but just couldn’t make it happen.
The Lady Bison would pull out the 45-22 victory in the junior varsity game to open the night.
Clearfield ends the regular season with a 10-12 record, their best record in the last three seasons. They also ended the year above the .500 mark in the Mountain League, and now look ahead to the Class AAA playoffs, set to begin in a few weeks.
Yet, all the while, Castagnolo said that emotions played a big factor in the way the game would play out. At the same time, he saw the same thing the fans in attendance did, which was a fantastic game between rival schools that would come right down to the final possession.
“It all had to do with that start. But the kids played their hearts out, what more can you ask for from a high school basketball game?,” he said. “Hats off to Philipsburg. They played an incredible game.”
Brackets for the playoffs will be released in the next week.
SCORE BY QUARTER
P-O 16 12 10 13 – 51
Clearfield 5 15 10 19 – 49
Philipsburg-Osceola 51
Herrington 4 2-2 13, Potter 1 1-2 3, Bone 7 1-2 15, Hayward 5 3-4 15, Cowfer 1 0-1 3, Hughes 0 2-2 2. TOTALS 18 9-13 51.
Clearfield 49
Castagnolo 4 0-1 12, Cline 2 0-0 4, E. Ryan 5 1-2 11, Lindstrom 0 0-0 0, A. Ryan 1 0-0 2, Brossard 0 0-0 0, Glenny 7 5-6 20. TOTALS 19 6-9 49.
GAME STATISTICS
P-O/Clearfield
Rebounds: 23/46
Turnovers: 10/21
Fouls: 13/13
Shooting: 18-59/19-61
Three-Point Shots: Hayward (2), Cowfer, Herrington (3)/Castagnolo (4)
Foul-Outs: Herrington
Lady Bison Scoreboard:
Date Opponent Score Record
12/04&05 @ Brookville Tip-off Tourney
12/04 vs. North Clarion 45 – 50 0 – 1
12/05 vs. Clarion-Limestone 64 – 24 1 – 1
12/08 CENTRAL 41 – 52 1 – 2
12/11 @ Huntingdon 41 – 28 2 – 2
12/14 @ DuBois 40 – 51 2 – 3
12/16 @ Bellefonte 48 – 47 3 – 3
12/18 TYRONE 40 – 66 3 – 4
12/21 BROOKVILLE 50 – 59 3 – 5
12/29 @ Curwensville 63 – 24 4 – 5
01/04 PUNXSUTAWNEY 43 – 55 4 – 6
01/05 @ Bald Eagle Area 53 – 40 5 – 6
01/08 PENNS VALLEY 42 – 70 5 – 7
01/13 @ Philipsburg-Osceola 42 – 38 6 – 7
01/15 @ Central 26 – 51 6 – 8
01/18 @ St. Marys 30 – 32 6 – 9
01/19 HUNTINGDON 47 – 34 7 – 9
01/22 BELLEFONTE 52 – 43 8 – 9
01/27 @ Tyrone 48 – 62 8 – 10
01/29 BALD EAGLE AREA 60 – 30 9 – 10
02/02 @ Penns Valley 35 – 59 9 – 11
02/04 CURWENSVILLE 80 – 30 10 – 11
02/05 PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA 49 – 51 10 – 12