The Saline Reporter
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
ALL GOOD THINGS
Hornets fall to Bedford 41-37
By Jerry Hinnen, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: February 28, 2008
The 2007-2008 Saline girls' basketball team saved what might have been its best performance in a season of good ones for last. But even that wasn't enough in the district semifinal Feb. 20 against Bedford.
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The Hornets looked poised for the upset against the 19-2, Southeastern Conference champion Kicking Mules when they sliced Bedford's nine-point fourth-quarter lead to 36-34 on a basket by Kaitlin Ward with 3:07 to play. But Bedford answered with a critical three-point play and held Saline to three points the rest of the way to escape 41-37.
Afterward, head coach Jason Pickett had nothing but praise for his Hornets and their effort against a team that had beaten them by an average of 22 points in the regular season.
"They fought to the very end," he said. "If one shot falls, if one call goes the other way, this is a different game. I couldn't ask for any more than our kids gave us tonight. I'm extremely proud of their effort."
Things looked bleak for Saline with five minutes to play in the fourth, with the Mules up 34-25 and senior center Kristen Nye fouling out of the game on a loose-ball foul to send Bedford to the line for a one-and-one. But the Mules committed a lane violation and Sarah Hoffman connected on a three-pointer on the ensuing possession.
The Hornets' switch to a full-court pressure defense started to pay dividends as Angie Hollis and Kristy Chapman scored following Mule turnovers to bring Saline within 36-32. Ward's basket capped the 9-2 Hornet run.
"When you have a team settled in to one style of play and then you change it up, it can take some time to adjust," Pickett said of the move to the press. "It worked well. That's what allowed us to get back in the game."
Unfortunately for the Hornets, it was as close as they would come. The Mule three-point play was followed by empty possessions for both teams until Hoffman scored a transition lay-up to make it a one-possession game, 39-36, with 40.9 seconds remaining.
The Hornets fouled and Bedford hit one of two to go back up 40-36. Chapman was fouled on a drive to the basket and hit one of two herself to bring Saline within 40-37, but with only 15.5 seconds remaining.
Bedford again hit one of two after a foul to go up four and effectively seal the win.
Chapman scored a team-high 13 points to go with four rebounds and two assists. Hoffman scored nine points, pulled in a team-high six rebounds and came away with four steals. Hollis scored five points, with Ward and Lauren Zakrasjek recording four each and Natalie Wright scoring two.
Each team finished with the same 14-of-33 outing from the field and Saline out-rebounded the Mules 23-15, but shot only nine free throws to Bedford's 18 and committed 16 turnovers to the Mules' 12.
The first half had been close to even as the Hornets "followed the game plan very well," said Pickett, in a stellar defensive first quarter. Bedford scored just six points, but Saline's own offensive struggles meant the period ended with the teams tied at six.
A Chapman basket with 2:55 to play in the second quarter gave Saline a 14-11 lead before back-to-back Mule threes helped Bedford to a 10-3 run and a 21-19 halftime advantage.
The Mules' half-court trap began to cause problems for Saline after the break, with several Hornet turnovers leading to opportunities on the other end. The Hornets finished the third quarter with just one field goal (a Chapman three), four points, and a 32-23 deficit.
"Our margin for error was very slim. We knew we couldn't have lapses, that we had to focus for the entire game, and that's hard to do," Pickett said. "Even after that, though, they kept fighting."
The loss finished Saline's season with a 13-8 overall record. The 13 wins represent more victories than the Hornets' total for the previous two years combined, and with four of Saline's starters against Bedford returning, the future looks bright.
"If we work hard in the off-season again and put in the time they did last off-season, we have the potential for more success," Pickett said. "If for whatever reason we don't put in the time, we won't. But I don't believe that's going to be the case. They've seen the value of hard work."
Pickett added that that success would have been impossible without the leadership and dedication of the three Saline seniors — Hoffman, Nye, and Monica Mezger — who played their final game against the Mules.
"We're just not here without them," he said. "I'm glad they experienced the success we've had their senior year. All three of them become stronger people through the year. They stepped up for this team and you saw that in the way we played tonight. That's the proof in the pudding."
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