Young Comets eclipse Bay as SWC champions
By Zachary Dzurick
Sports
Published Feb. 9, 2005

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Amherst’s Audra Mihalic battles Bay’s Paris Pugliese. Both scored 18 points in the game.(Photo by Larry Bennet)

For Bay to have a chance to repeat as SWC co-champions in basketball, the Lady Rockets needed to hold serve at home Monday against league leader Amherst.

The Rockets matched the intensity of the Comets for most of the game but in the second half, the Comets built a lead then forced Bay to play more their style. The Comets took a six-point lead after the third quarter and Bay could never get closer than five the rest of the fourth. It had appeared with 1:35 left, Bay would cut it to four as junior Paris Pugliese stole the ball and went in for a layup, but 5'7 Amherst reserve guard Maddie Sofia blocked the shot. Then the Comets made just enough free throws to hold the Rockets off and finally win 60-53.

Without a single senior on their roster, Amherst, 17-2 overall, won the SWC title. The Comets shook off an early season loss at North Olmsted to win their last 10 conference games to finish 13-1. It was Amherst's first conference title since 1991-92.

"It was a tough game and we won that is all matters," reigning conference MVP Audra Mihalic said. "It was fun. The whole team wanted it bad. We hadn't won in so long that we didn't want to share."

For most of the first quarter, the two team traded baskets. Amherst controlled the boards behind Rocky River transfer Sasha Samara and most of their early points came directly from offensive rebounds.

"Sasha came up big in the first half and kept us in the game with the stick backs," Amherst coach John Rositano said. "I thought she controlled the boards in the first half."

The early stage of the game was fast- paced and very clean. The game's first turnover did not occur until nearly half- way through the first. Quickly however, the pace and the strong defense of both teams started to force each other to turnover the ball.

Bay built a six point second quarter lead behind senior Jessica Lauerhass and junior Paris Pugliese. However Pugliese went to the bench in the final moments of the half and Amherst closed the quarter on a 6-0 to tie the game at 28.

Amherst junior Audra Mihalic was the 2003-2004 conference MVP. She was held to just two points for the game's first 14 minutes but finished with 18. She also controlled the pace of the game in the second half and made 10 of 12 free throws in the second half. Samara had a game-high 19.

Rositano said that win did not come easy.

"Bay played very well," Rositano said. "It took a tremendous effort on our part to come in here and get a win."

The key for Amherst was getting the lead.

"The key to the game was the third quarter," Rositano said. "I think we are quicker than they are and if we could bring them out of that zone they were playing that was causing us problems. We did get them to come out after us when we got the lead and we got to the line. Once we got the lead, we forced them to play our game."

Bay coach Chris Brewer was disappointed but gave credit to Amherst.

"They got us tonight," brewer said. "Amherst did a great job. They deserved it."

Bay found success early in the lane with Pugliese, but in the second half those opportunities came harder and harder to come by.

"Their interior defense was brutal," Brewer said. "We had a hard time getting the ball inside. We lost our composure a little and quit doing what we wanted to do. When you can't get the ball inside."

Pugliese led Bay with 18 points. Lauerhass finished with 13. Junior Sarah Kazanas also had 13.