John Jay Holds on in 49-42 Win Over Somers

Back from break, John Jay traveled to Somers on Wednesday January 3 and didn’t come out with any rust. The Wolves built a 21-9 second quarter lead and looked well on their way. But the Tuskers put some squeak to their wheels, and when Arianna Adelmann sunk a triple, the three point fourth quarter difference suddenly had the game in doubt.

Even so, the girls remained calm, kept the ball moving, stayed tough under the boards and made the big buckets to secure a 49-42 victory.

Either way, the game began on overdrive. Jane Brennan spotted a lane and burst through for two, and on the other end, Caitlin Mayfield tied the game on a reverse layup.

The momentum remained with John Jay, though, and Natalie Ellrodt’s thread began a 10-0 run. She fed Sela Halaifonua cutting to the hoop, and the junior gave the Wolves the lead for good.

No doubt, Halaifonua was far from done. Strong under the boards, the next three defensive rebounds went her way and led to six straight points. Brennan got two on a drive, Halaifonua scored two from the line, and then airmailed Ellrodt a long outlet pass for the fast break bucket.

But after Brennan went to the line to complete the run, Somers got into the passing lanes. Sydney Ingraham made a half court steal and fed Lindsay McCullough ahead.

She netted the fast break layup and Brennan and Adelmann closed the first and opened the second by trading baskets. So John Jay went on another run. Brooke Habinowski got to the rim for a three point play, Charlotte Omin cruised through the lane for two more, and Habinowski muscled a put back to make it a 21-9 game.

Still, Somers stayed in the neighborhood by closing the half with a Mayfield three. Not missing a beat to intermission, the third quarter had John Jay extend the lead anyway.

To start, Halaifonua got the block down low, and the guard was off to the races. She got the ball up court, hit Brennan on the bounce, and she scrubbed the paint for another layup.

Now 23-12, Halaifonua shook off a Lindsay McCullough three by dropping a put back at 2:58 and then being smart on her feet. She broke for the hoop, Jordan Kauftheil received the telepathy, and Halaifonua took the over the shoulder pass for a 28-15 lead.

Not done yet, Halaifonua could give a good look too. Driving the baseline, the eyes in the back of her head hit Habinowski above the arc, and the senior drained a three to extend to a 16 point lead.

1:35 left in the third, Somers refused to go away. After Olivia Allegretti took the rebound away from Halaifonua, and got two from the line, Mayfield executed a three point play on her put back to close the third.

An 11 point game, Somers opened the fourth with a McCullough layup, but Brennan and Halaifonua refused to give ground. Brennan got to the line for two, and Halaifonua returned the favor to Kauftheil. She dropped in a perfect over the top pass, and Kauftheil went glass to maintain the status quo at 6:35.

Unfortunately, Somers didn’t care. McCullough and Adelmann both hit threes, and after Adelmann got to the line, it was 35-31.

5:39 remaining, Kacey McCullough picked off a pass in the paint and Adelmann got in close on the other end. But the ball rolled off the rim, and the center would follow with a miss from three.

Of course, Halaifonua was there for the rebound, and no surprise, she drove the lane for the momentum killing layup. 37-31, Somers answered with another missed layup, but Kauftheil did the same on her jump shot.

Only thing, Habinowski grabbed the rebound, and gave her teammate a chance to redeem. While falling out of bounds, Habinowski swung the ball to Kauftheil in the corner, and she completed a three point play on her drive to the hoop.

The 40-31 lead with 4:31 remaining wasn’t safe, though. This time the threes came from Allegretti and Adelmann, and a time out seeming in order, Coach Matt Gallagher let his girls play on.

So the Wolves got the ball up court and rewarded their coach’s confidence. Habinowski came off the screen, Halaifonua had the read, and the layup went off glass to make it 42-37.

An Allegretti miss landed in the hands of Brennan, and after Jaime Bartley-Cohen’s strong inside drive went off the rim, Halaifonua was again in the right place.

She got the rebound, sunk the put back, and the 44-37 advantage was enough to start warming up the bus. The remaining 1:08 went easy and left John Jay 3-4 on the season.