Girls’ BB: Hutchinson, Haven knock off Tamaqua in Division I showdown
Schuylkill Haven coach Tony Sanders talks to his team during a timeout at Friday's Schuylkill League Division I game at Tamaqua (Photo by Leroy Boyer).
TAMAQUA — Audrey Hutchinson spent the past six weeks overcoming a broken collarbone suffered during the District 11 Class A girls’ soccer semifinals Oct. 24.
Friday night, the work she put in during rehab and recovery during that time frame paid off in one of the biggest victories of her high school basketball career to date.
The Schuylkill Haven junior guard scored all 10 of her points in the fourth quarter to lift the Hurricanes to a 40-30 win over Tamaqua in the Schuylkill League Division I opener for both clubs.
Three of those buckets came off steals as Schuylkill Haven’s defense forced 35 turnovers to knock off the preseason Division I favorite Blue Raiders.
“I felt really good,” Hutchinson said of her return. “Not being able to play in my last soccer game with my teammates definitely hurt me, but my goal was to be back for this game. I knew Wednesday when I got cleared that I was going to be here and I was going to give it my all.
“It felt really good to be back and did what I did tonight.”
Hutchinson delivered the knockout blow in what was an intense, physical slugfest between two of the Division I heavyweights.
The Hurricanes (2-0, 1-0 D-I) controlled things early, building a 22-10 lead with 4:29 left in the second quarter. Mckenna Runkle had four of her seven points and Taylor Haag and Alea Porter each hit 3-pointers to pace the Haven offense.
Defensively, though, is where Haven set the tone. Tamaqua committed 10 turnovers in the first quarter and 10 more in the second and never got into a rhythm offensively.
The Hurricanes made sure Tamaqua’s three top players — Lauren Ligenza, Leah Black and Kolbe Robb — were surrounded at all times and challenged every time they shot the ball.
In addition to the 35 turnovers, Tamaqua shot 12-for-45 (27%) from the field and 5-for-11 from the foul line.
“That number is flabbergasting,” Tamaqua coach Erika Davis said of her team’s 35 turnovers. “When we have more turnovers than points against a real disciplined, hard-working team … Haven gave it to us.
“We folded under pressure. I told our girls, ‘It’s going to come down to who wants it more.’ And they 100 percent showed in every category that they wanted it more. Kudos to them. They played tough and we didn’t match that.”
After having everything go right for the first 12 minutes, however, Schuylkill Haven went ice cold from the field. The Hurricanes went 10:48 without scoring, with Kelly Ulsh’s layup with 1:42 remaining in the third quarter ending the drought.
Haven would score just two points in the third quarter, shooting 1-for-9 and turning the ball over eight times. Still, somehow, Haven led 24-22 after three quarters
“That’s a credit to our defense,” Schuylkill Haven coach Tony Sanders said. “They kept us in the game the whole way and then we stepped it up on the offensive end late in the game.”
Tamaqua slowly got back into the game, despite still struggling offensively. What amounted to a 15-2 run that featured seven points by Kendle Miller and four by Ligenza gave the Blue Raiders the lead.
Tamaqua tied it on a jumper by Miller then went ahead 25-24 on a free throw by Millie Black with 6:36 left in the game.
Miller led Tamaqua with nine points, while Ligenza ended with seven and Sam Plasha tallied six.
Back came Haven.
First, Runkle buried a 3-pointer from the top of the key to put Haven up 27-25. Runkle had a strong overall game, finishing with seven points and 10 rebounds.
“That was huge,” Sanders said of the sophomore forward. “We just kept telling her to be confident and keep shooting the ball when you’re open.
“She boxed out well (defensively). We preached that all week in practice and the girls did a real good job of that tonight.”
