P-O Comeback Runs Short on Time, Lady Bison Win Second Straight

HYDE — After being forced to wait nearly a week to compete due to Friday’s school cancellation, the Lady Bison of Clearfield were eager to get back on the court and play.  The Bison Gymnasium was ready to welcome the home team back to the hardwood, and would do so with rival Philipsburg-Osceola on the opposite side ready to get the action going.

Early on, Clearfield appeared to not only be a different team, but looked unlike any of their previous games.  Entering halftime, the Bison had a lead that was on the brink of possibly putting the Mercy Rule into effect.  However, the visiting Lady Mounties were not ones to just yield and admit defeat.

The tale of two halves saw P-O come roaring back with an intense third and fourth quarter of play.  However, over the entire game, Clearfield had the more consistent on-court presence, and it allowed them to pick up the 70-64 victory.

“Philipsburg didn’t quit.  They went into halftime down 30, they could’ve quit,” head coach Joey Castagnolo said following the game.  “But they didn’t, and they played hard.”

After just two quarters of play, Clearfield held a 40-10 advantage on P-O.  In the second quarter alone the Bison defense played tough on the boards and took advantage of turnovers, outscoring the Mounties 22-2 in the frame.  P-O was only 1-for-21 in the quarter, and just 5-for-37 the entire first half.

It was entirely different when the teams emerged from the locker room to begin the second half.

P-O would start the third quarter with an 11-2 run, fueled by three-point shots from Cheyanne Cowfer and Haylee Hayward, plus some jump shots in the paint from Abby Showers.  It would be the most dominant quarter from the visiting team as P-O had 28 points in the frame.

Still, Clearfield wouldn’t back down and stayed consistent to keep a nine-point gap heading into the final quarter.

“They can shoot the three, and they have three outstanding shooters.  I was concerned, but when we needed a key basket, I called the right play to get back in it,” Castagnolo said.  “I knew they could shoot the three and they got hot. I think the girls felt like they were in cruise control.”

Showers would lead the Lady Mounties with 26 points, while Hayward added another 25.

But, Clearfield would keep the pressure on and used their speed both in transition and while in-bounding the ball to get points, and put the visiting squad in a deeper hole.  The Lady Bison were paced by Rachel Glenny, who ended the night with both a game-high and career-high 27 points, and also added 10 rebounds.  Over half those points came in the first two quarters of play, and Castagnolo was quick to point out that his player both felt and looked different in the second half, even with her strong play on the boards and in scoring.

“We ran some nice in-bounds plays, caught them off guard.  Rachel got tired. You figure every play she runs block to block.  She got tired, and got dehydrated at halftime,” Castagnolo said.  “She’s starting to become a real factor in this league, and that makes me really happy.”

Mary Ishman added another 16 points for the Lady Bison, while Emily Ryan added another 10 while leading the team in assists with seven.

The Mounties closed the gap to six points late in the contest, including the final basket of the game from Cowfer just inside the wing.  Even though the two halves were different for his team, Castagnolo was pleased with the play from the Lady Bison over the 32 minutes, as well as how his team has progressed through the first month and a half of the season.

“We work hard.  We’re 4-8, 3-3 in the league.  We gave away some of those game early in the season.  Maybe in the second half they will go the other way,” he said with a smile.

Clearfield continues its four-game home stand this Friday as they host St. Marys.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

P-O   8   2   28   26   –   64

Clearfield   18   22   17   13   –   70

Philipsburg-Osceola 64

Hughes 0 0-0 0, POtter 0 0-0 0, Bone 2 0-0 4, Hayward 9 1-2 25, Kephart 0 0-0 0, Cowfer 3 0-0 7, Foreman 0 0-0 0, Showers 9 6-6 26, Kelly 0 0-0 0, Nartatae 1 0-0 2.  TOTALS 24 7-10 64

Clearfield 70

Castagnolo 1 0-0 2, Cline 0 0-0 0, Ryan 5 0-0 10, Lindstrom 3 0-1 6, Waring 0 0-0 0, Riddell 0 0-0 0, Rockmore 2 1-2 5, Aveni 1 2-2 4, Glenny 11 5-6 27, Ishman 8 0-0 16, Boal 0 0-0 0.  TOTALS 31 8-11 70

GAME STATISTICS
P-O/Clearfield

Field Goals Made-Attempted:  24-81/31-64

Team Fouls:  9/12

Rebounds:  31/42

Turnovers:  18/21

Three-Point Shots:  Hayward (6), Cowfer, Showers (2)/None

Lady Bison Scoreboard: