Wilson 55, Ocean City 52
What I'm listenting to: Jay-Z... Sarah McLaughlan... Stefanie Praytor... Ash... Interpol... Midnight Oil... Tori Amos... Nellie McKay... more Jay-Z (happy now, Dennis?)... Aqualung...
I had a lot of family in the house tonight because my cousin, Danielle Brady, is a starter for OC. Now that the Red Raiders' season is over, I can say how proud I am of how she's played. She doesn't usually make much of a dent in the scoring column, but on a team with no height, she always defends the opposing center. She fouled out trying to stop Ossiera Monroe tonight, but she played as tough as anybody out there. She's one of a bunch of juniors and sophomores that will have that team back in the Top 10 next year.
I know Wilson was hoping and even expecting to blow this game out, and it would be easy for the Tigers to be disappointed. In fact, it's almost good that our photographer didn't stay until the end of the game because the reaction shot he would have gotten wouldn't have been great. Except for the crying, you would have thought OC won the game. There were a bunch of reporters there, and Wilson kept us waiting a long time while they talked things over. That usually doesn't happen with a squad that just won a championship.
One complicating circumstance, of course, was the condition of Monroe, who went to the floor hard in the second half. Apparently, she hit the back of her head hard on the floor and suffered a concussion. It was bad enough that, after the game, an ambulance was called to take her away. I sincerely hope that everything turns out OK for her. She was really hauling in rebounds tonight, and playing strong. Only a sophomore, she's deceptively quick, and she has a chance to be a real star in the next couple years. Hopefully, her 2006 isn't over.
Anyway, my Uncle Rich (a.k.a. Coach Crane) asked me at halftime if OC had a chance to come back, and being honest, I said that it didn't look good. Wilson is basically built and tested to prevent that very thing. The Tigers are trained to win tough games and stand up to pressure, so I was probably as suprised as anybody that they got a little rattled today. OC shot the ball very well, at least compared to other times I've seen them play, and they really showed what kind of team they can be if they shoot. This effort certainly would have beaten Trenton Central.
In other news, Brittany Smith was flat-out off the hook tonight. 40 points in a sectional final. Wow, I haven't seen that since Crystal three years ago. I was disappointed in how Gloucester played with the exception on DJ Havers, who seemed like she was everywhere for the Lions. McAdams was good too, and she even made a couple threes, but as a distrubtor, she needed to find Conner a little more. To me, that was the difference in the game. Last year, Salem had the dominant force down low and took advantage of it. Today that edge should have belonged to Gloucester and the Lions couldn't make it work for them. Gloucester has the talent to be back in that game next year, but unfortunately for them, Salem returns everybody. And unfortunately for the Rams, Bllomfield Tech isn't likely to slack off any time soon, so that brick wall is still out there, waiting for them in Toms River.
Wilson gets Monmouth next, just like last year. Salem, on the other hand, will face the Hunterdon County Dairy Princess herself, Breanna Fulper, and South Hunterdon. My boss has suggested I take a much-needed day off that day, and let some other folks cover those two games, and I find it's usually smart to do what mu boss says. I thought about just going to watch, but the throught of a night way from girls basketball isn't so distasteful right now. Plus, I'll get to watch the Project Runway finale, which is of the utmost importance. Tonight's action forced me to miss my second-favorite show on TV, Rollergirls, but I'll just have to catch it on one of the replays later in the week.
Anyway, I have to thank the CH East folks, especially athletic director Bob Hulme, for being so accomodating tonight. And also Wilson AD Stanley Ash for the conversation this afternoon. And lastly, to the CP desk guys for catching a misspelling in my story. Of course, I'll be known as Sena for a little while (yes I misspelled my own first name).
Congratulations, also, to Bishop Eustace and Bordentown, whose remarkable runs ended tonight, Both of those teams upset higher seeds before falling short. That should both be very proud, because they represented South Jersey admirably.
I'll be at Lakewood for CC-Spirit tomorrow night. The great thing about the basketball playoffs is that they go by so quickly. There's no down time, like in other sports. We've all been looking forward to this game since Saturday night, but that's not a very long time.
I had a lot of family in the house tonight because my cousin, Danielle Brady, is a starter for OC. Now that the Red Raiders' season is over, I can say how proud I am of how she's played. She doesn't usually make much of a dent in the scoring column, but on a team with no height, she always defends the opposing center. She fouled out trying to stop Ossiera Monroe tonight, but she played as tough as anybody out there. She's one of a bunch of juniors and sophomores that will have that team back in the Top 10 next year.
I know Wilson was hoping and even expecting to blow this game out, and it would be easy for the Tigers to be disappointed. In fact, it's almost good that our photographer didn't stay until the end of the game because the reaction shot he would have gotten wouldn't have been great. Except for the crying, you would have thought OC won the game. There were a bunch of reporters there, and Wilson kept us waiting a long time while they talked things over. That usually doesn't happen with a squad that just won a championship.
One complicating circumstance, of course, was the condition of Monroe, who went to the floor hard in the second half. Apparently, she hit the back of her head hard on the floor and suffered a concussion. It was bad enough that, after the game, an ambulance was called to take her away. I sincerely hope that everything turns out OK for her. She was really hauling in rebounds tonight, and playing strong. Only a sophomore, she's deceptively quick, and she has a chance to be a real star in the next couple years. Hopefully, her 2006 isn't over.
Anyway, my Uncle Rich (a.k.a. Coach Crane) asked me at halftime if OC had a chance to come back, and being honest, I said that it didn't look good. Wilson is basically built and tested to prevent that very thing. The Tigers are trained to win tough games and stand up to pressure, so I was probably as suprised as anybody that they got a little rattled today. OC shot the ball very well, at least compared to other times I've seen them play, and they really showed what kind of team they can be if they shoot. This effort certainly would have beaten Trenton Central.
In other news, Brittany Smith was flat-out off the hook tonight. 40 points in a sectional final. Wow, I haven't seen that since Crystal three years ago. I was disappointed in how Gloucester played with the exception on DJ Havers, who seemed like she was everywhere for the Lions. McAdams was good too, and she even made a couple threes, but as a distrubtor, she needed to find Conner a little more. To me, that was the difference in the game. Last year, Salem had the dominant force down low and took advantage of it. Today that edge should have belonged to Gloucester and the Lions couldn't make it work for them. Gloucester has the talent to be back in that game next year, but unfortunately for them, Salem returns everybody. And unfortunately for the Rams, Bllomfield Tech isn't likely to slack off any time soon, so that brick wall is still out there, waiting for them in Toms River.
Wilson gets Monmouth next, just like last year. Salem, on the other hand, will face the Hunterdon County Dairy Princess herself, Breanna Fulper, and South Hunterdon. My boss has suggested I take a much-needed day off that day, and let some other folks cover those two games, and I find it's usually smart to do what mu boss says. I thought about just going to watch, but the throught of a night way from girls basketball isn't so distasteful right now. Plus, I'll get to watch the Project Runway finale, which is of the utmost importance. Tonight's action forced me to miss my second-favorite show on TV, Rollergirls, but I'll just have to catch it on one of the replays later in the week.
Anyway, I have to thank the CH East folks, especially athletic director Bob Hulme, for being so accomodating tonight. And also Wilson AD Stanley Ash for the conversation this afternoon. And lastly, to the CP desk guys for catching a misspelling in my story. Of course, I'll be known as Sena for a little while (yes I misspelled my own first name).
Congratulations, also, to Bishop Eustace and Bordentown, whose remarkable runs ended tonight, Both of those teams upset higher seeds before falling short. That should both be very proud, because they represented South Jersey admirably.
I'll be at Lakewood for CC-Spirit tomorrow night. The great thing about the basketball playoffs is that they go by so quickly. There's no down time, like in other sports. We've all been looking forward to this game since Saturday night, but that's not a very long time.
posted by SMc. @ 1:52 AM
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