CURWENSVILLE — The final week of the season for the Curwensville Lady Tide could not come at a better time. After having to be away from the court most of last week due to weather and cancellations, being back on the hardwood at Patton Hall was a welcome sight. Their opposition, the Lady Owls of Harmony, were ready to play spoiler in the Mo Valley League contest..
After a sluggish first quarter, and a rather unique start to the game, the Lady Tide exploded in the second quarter on both sides of the ball. Using the momentum to score, rebound, and play physically without being overly rough, Curwensville brought the home crowd to its feet with a 66-45 triumph, their first win at home since December 16.
Assistant coach James Hoyt, who was filling the role as head coach with Bob Desmett absent due to a personal matter, complemented the team with their play.
“We’ve been talking a lot about those little intangible things, like tonight things got a little rough, I told them ‘Don’t get a technical foul, don’t let that stuff happen; it kills momentum.’ When you got it, it’s a magical thing,” Hoyt said. “The gym stays alive, kids make shots. It’s a good thing.”
The game did not start exactly under normal circumstances. Game officials came out before the teams, and one of them took notice when warm ups were just beginning as the Owls took the court. One saw the team go under the opposing basket while the Tide was warming up, which is a pre-game violation. When the pre-game meeting between captains and coaches came together, it was explained that the violation resulted in a technical foul against Harmony. Curwensville, before either team took to the court, would get a pair of free throws, plus the opening possession, and it forced Harmony’s head coach, Sean McMullen, to sit on the sidelines the entire game while Hoyt could stand and roam.
Alyssa Bakaysa was given the free throw opportunities, hitting one, and giving Curwensville the opening lead before any time came off the clock.
“It’s certainly an odd way to start the game. Sure, it’s nice to know you’re going to get the ball. But, you have a cold player shooting two free throws with no one around her,” Hoyt said. “But, (Alyssa) made one of two, that helped us, but starting out slow, there was just something to it (the game flow).”
Harmony answered back with a three-point shot by Sherri Kephart, and eventually opened up a four-point lead in the first few minutes. Curwensville rallied back, but finished the first eight minutes down 14-9. Little did they know the second quarter would change everything.
Despite being down at one point by six, one opportunity by Tarah Jacobson put the Tide firmly in control.
A missed free throw by Jessalyn Schneider resulted in a rebound by Jacobson, who then ran the entire sideline to the hoop, tying the game at 13 a piece. Shortly after, Curwensville began rolling, as shot after shot would make the net, including a couple clutch three-pointers from Skylar Pentz, who came off the bench and started in the second quarter. In all, Curwensville added 24 points in the second quarter, all but one coming from the floor, while holding Harmony to just 11, taking a 33-25 advantage into the locker room.
Jacobson finished the night with 11 points, one of three Lady Tide players in double figures.
The third quarter, for both teams, was rather sloppy, and the pace slowed down quite a bit. Combined, the Owls and Tide committed 24 turnovers, and things got a bit chippy. At one point, Curwensville’s Hannah Condon and Harmony’s Schneider were each assessed a foul on a play where both went for the rebound. Schneider seemed to take offense to the aggressive play, and while on the floor it appeared Condon took a swipe at Schneider’s foot. Officials did not call either a technical foul, and the offset allowed play to restart after each squad took a rest.
Hoyt attributed the third quarter play of each side to the change of defense, stating “they switched to man-to-man, which caught us a bit out (of sorts). We panicked, but we knew the plan for man defense coming in,” he said. “It was a matter of getting it executed, and the trick for us against man is to be patient. I don’t think we were very patient at that point.”
Curwensville entered the final quarter up by 10, but played as if they were only up by one. In the quarter, Bakaysa and Kiara Henry got fed the ball, and also found ways to feed others the ball. Bakaysa scored seven of her team-high 20 points in the quarter, including a three-pointer at the top of the key, while Henry added in another seven to finish the night with 16 tallies to her name. Bakaysa finished the game with a double-double, adding in 11 rebounds to her stat line, plus adding four steals and three assists.
Harmony was paced by Traci Houser, who finished with a game-high 22 points, while Kephart added in another 16. The Lady Owls were out-rebounded in the game, 31-22, including only four total in the third quarter.
Curwensville won the opening junior varsity contest in a low-scoring, but nail-biting, 17-16 final.
Hoyt was excited to see the team perform as they had not been on the court since last Wednesday due to the weather forcing postponements, but he also knew the girls would finish out the season at home, something he was excited for.
“We got three this week, and we have a good shot at all three,” Hoyt said. “We got the first. We want to play like we did tonight, and end the year on a high note. Our record may not reflect it, but we are a much better team than our record shows.”
Curwensville (5-15) is back in action when they host their final Mo Valley League game of the season against the Lady Damsels of Moshannon Valley. Tip off will be at 6 p.m. for the junior varsity, their final one of the season, with the varsity to follow.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Harmony 14 11 10 10 – 45
Curwensville 9 24 12 21 – 66
Harmony – 45
To. Houser 1 0-0 2, Tr. Houser 6 8-9 22, Smith 0 0-1 0, Schneider 2 1-3 5, Kephart 6 2-4 16, Brothers 0 0-0 0, Passmore 0 0-0 0, Price 0 0-0 0, Winings 0 0-1 0, Meagher 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 15 11-19 45.
Curwensville – 66
Condon 1 2-2 4, Jacobson 5 1-4 11, Swindell 1 3-4 5, Bakaysa 7 5-6 20, Henry 7 1-3 16, Guiher 1 1-3 3, Cossar 0 0-0 0, Anderson 0 0-0 0, Caldwell 0 0-0 0, Pentz 2 1-2 7, Weber 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 24 9-24 66.
GAME STATISTICS
Harmony/Curwensville
Shooting: 15-51/24-63
Rebounds: 22/31
Fouls: 18/17
Turnovers: 35/33
Three-Point Shots: Tr. Houser-2, Kephart-2/Bakaysa, Henry, Pentz-2
Foul Outs: To. Houser
Technical Fouls: Harmony Bench
Lady Tide Scoreboard:
| Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| 12/09 | WEST BRANCH | 34 – 37 | 0 – 1 |
| 12/11 | @ Mo Valley | 49 – 35 | 1 – 1 |
| 12/16 | PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA | 47 – 24 | 2 – 1 |
| 12/18 | RIDGWAY | 18 – 30 | 2 – 2 |
| 12/27 | CLEARFIELD | 16 – 49 | 2 – 3 |
| 01/02 | @ DuBois Central | 32 – 73 | 2 – 4 |
| 01/03 | @ Brockway | 21 – 63 | 2 – 5 |
| 01/06 | @ West Branch | 31 – 32 | 2 – 6 |
| 01/08 | GLENDALE | 17 – 58 | 2 – 7 |
| 01/10 | @ Harmony | 52 – 36 | 3 – 7 |
| 01/14 | ELK COUNTY CATHOLIC | 14 – 27 | 3 – 8 |
| 01/17 | @ Kane | 23 – 49 | 3 – 9 |
| 01/21 | @ Ridgway | 13 – 30 | 3 – 10 |
| 01/24 | BROCKWAY | 33 – 51 | 3 – 11 |
| 01/27 | @ Clearfield | 33 – 34 | 3 – 12 |
| 01/30 | @ Philipsburg-Osceola | 31 – 34 | 3 – 13 |
| 01/31 | @ Johnsonburg | 45 – 24 | 4 – 13 |
| 02/04 | DUBOIS CENTRAL | 26 – 38 | 4 – 14 |
| 02/05 | @ Glendale | 26 – 64 | 4 – 15 |
| 02/07 | SHEFFIELD | ppd. | 4 – 15 |
| 02/10 | HARMONY | 66 – 45 | 5 – 15 |
| 02/12 | MO VALLEY | ||
| 02/13 | SHEFFIELD |
