The Tyrone Lady Eagles’ 63-31 loss to Indian Valley last night in Highland Park was strange for a lot of reasons.
It was Tyrone’s most lopsided loss to the Lady Warriors since losing to Valley 63-35 in January of 2000; the Lady Eagles made it to the foul line just one time, after spending the season-opener attacking the heart of Bellwood-Antis’ tree-topping defense; and most importantly, head coach Jim Swaney was absent, after his father-in-law passed away earlier in the day.
One thing, however, remained the same: Valley attacked the Lady Eagles defensively from all angles, ran a patient half-court offense, and drained shots with marked consistency, creating a typically balanced Lady Warrior score sheet.
“We’re small, but we’re athletic, and we are quick,” said Valley coach Roger Herto. “Offensively, we can do some good things, but our best offense is defense.”
That much was evident throughout the game, as Valley pressured Tyrone point guard Emily McKenna relentlessly when the Lady Eagles tried to set up in the half court. Valley also trapped the wings and corners, making it difficult for Tyrone’s inexperienced rotation, which last night featured three sophomores in the starting line-up, to find any rhythm offensively.
When the Lady Eagles were able to protect the ball, they found success. They led 10-7 midway through the first quarter after a McKenna bank shot and were rebounding uncharacteristic Valley misses well enough to stay close. Tyrone trailed 17-10 after Valley closed the quarter on a 10-0 run, and turned the ball over only three times in the first eight minutes.
The Lady Eagles cut into Valley’s lead again in the second quarter, narrowing the gap to 17-15 on a jumper by McNelis at the 4:21 mark, but that’s when turnovers began piling up on Tyrone. The Lady Eagles turned the ball over five times in the final four minutes of the period, and Valley led 26-17 at halftime.
The Lady Warriors scored twice off of turnovers in the first two minutes of the third quarter – once on a steal and layup by Megan Hartman and again after a Hartman steal led to a Janelle Shellenberger lay-in -keying a 14-0 Indian Valley run that jacked the lead up to 38-17 by the 4:48 mark. Hartman scored all of her team-high 12 points in the third quarter, twice hitting from beyond the arc, and Valley led 49-26.
“What hurt us wasn’t Hartman’s points so much as it was her defense,” said Tyrone assistant Beth Cannistraci, who assumed bench responsibilities in Swaney’s absence. “She made it difficult to run our offenses and we kept bringing the ball up higher and higher. We were having trouble getting our first pass in.”
Valley’s hot hands in the second half didn’t help the Lady Eagles’ cause either. The Lady Warriors connected on nine of 12 shots in the third quarter, and then opened the fourth quarter with an 8-0 run.
Valley made 68 percent of its shots in the second half.
In all, the Lady Eagles turned the ball over 11 times in the second half, 19 times in the game.
“In the first half, we were really making them work and we were in it,” said Cannistraci. “In the third quarter, there were some adjustments I could have made and didn’t make and once the kids reached a frustration level, it was all over. It was an adjustment for the kids because they rely on coach. Him not being here was probably as hard for them as anything else they may have experienced.”
Herto agreed that the game took on a different tone without the emotional presence of Swaney.
“Tyrone wasn’t itself tonight,” he said. “They had a lot of things to deal with and we want to pass along our condolences to coach Swaney. He’s a good friend and a good coach. It’s tough for kids to respond to situations like that and I think Beth did a fine job.”
Shellenberger matched Hartman’s 12 and Lauren Schauf tossed in 11 for Valley, while Gina Van Gaverer chipped in nine.
McKenna led Tyrone with 10 points, and McNelis and Kylie Wallace added eight apiece.
The loss dropped Tyrone to 0-2, while Valley went to 1-0.
The Lady Eagles travel to Huntingdon next on Friday, Dec. 5.
JUNIOR VARSITY
Tyrone’s jayvees fell to the Lady Warriors 38-25, despite a 12-point, six-rebound effort from Sharon Long.
The Lady Eagles trimmed a 19-8 deficit at the half to seven points heading into the fourth quarter, but Valley pulled away with a 13-7 frame.
VARSITY
Indian Valley 63 Tyrone 31
TYRONE – McNelis 4 0-0 8; McKenna 4 0-0 10; Wallace 3 2-2 8; Roth 1 0-0 2; Stanton 1 0-0 3; Ingle 0 0-0 0; Hoover 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 13 2-2 31.
INDIAN VALLEY – Hartman 5 0-0 12; Shellenberger 5 1-2 12; VanGaverer 3 3-5 9; Harlacher 1 0-0 2; Mitchell 2 2-2 6; Tewksbury 2 1-1 5; Schulze 3 0-0 6; Schauf 4 1-2 11. TOTALS: 25 8-12 63.
Score by Quarters
Tyrone 10 7 9 5 – 31
Indian Valley 17 9 23 14 – 63
Three point goals: Tyrone 3 (McKenna 2, Stanton 1).
Indian Valley 5 (Hartman 2, Schauf 2, Shellenberger 1).
JUNIOR VARSITY
Indian Valley 38 Tyrone 25
TYRONE – Ingle 1 0-0 2; Bradford 1 0-0 2; Stanton 1 1-2 4; Hoover 1 0-0 2; Glace 0 0-2 0; Long 4 1-2 12; Benakovic 0 1-2 1; Brauer 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 9 3-8 25
INDIAN VALLEY – Narehood 3 0-1 6; Summers 0 1-2 1; Reinke 0 0-1 0; Warntz 2 0-0 5; Mundy 1 0-0 2; Bell 3 2-4 8; Mernin 4 4-5 12; Schulze 1 1-2 3; Woodring 0 1-2 1. TOTALS: 14 9-17 38
Score by Quarters
Tyrone 2 6 10 7 – 25
Indian Valley 6 13 6 13 – 38
Three point goals: Tyrone 4 (Long 4, Stanton 1).
Indian Valley 1 (Warntz 1).
