Battling Ballina girls come up just short
DESPITE a massive late comeback in the last quarter, St. Mary's Secondary School, Ballina, went down by four points to Tipperary's, Scoil Ruain, Killenaule (39-35), in the Subway All-Irleand Schools Cup Under 16 B Schoolgirl's at the National Basketball Arena in Tallaght.
It began well for the Ballina girls who took the first quarter 10-6, Shauna McCann and Orla Boyce nailing some good scores.
However, the Tipperary girls bounced back in style in the second half in what was at times a very phsysical game.
An MVP performance from Niamh Hayes who was outstanding in particular on defense, along with a super display from Issy Hayden helped see the Tipperary girls turn things around and they lead by 23-17 at the break, holding the Ballina girls to just seven points in that second quarter.
Four points in a row from Scoil Ruain’s Ava Heffernan and Niamh Hayes saw them open up a 10-pointt gap (27-17) with just under three minutes to play in the third but Ballina, under the experienced coach Trine Kennedy, came back at them as the quarter came to a close, and points from Boyce and Eimear Treacy brought the gap back to 34-22 going into the last quarter.
A huge run from St. Mary’s in the fourth quarter brought the game right back into the melting pot as they went on a 9-2 run to see them trail by just five going into the last minute and a half and they might well have been on terms had they put away a number of good chances.
Scores from Emelia Murphy, Amy Connor, Shauna McCann and Boyce once moreset up a nerve-wracking finale to the game, with Georgia Murphy proving to be a thorn in Scoil Ruain's side.
Scoil Ruain kept their cool though and Issy Hayden stretched the lead once more from the free-throw line, netting both of her shots under huge pressure.
However, the game was not over just yet and a huge response from Georgia Murphy, Ella Morrisson and Boyce saw St. Mary’s back within four as the seconds ticked down, the Tipperary school holding out in a thrilling finish but I expect we will see many of these Ballina girls back at the National Basketball Arena as they move up a grade next year.
St. Mary's Secondary School (Ballina): Orla Boyce (13), Eimear Treacy (5), Mollie Tully (2), Georgia Murphy (13), Sinead Honan, Emelia Murphy (2), Ciara Durkin, Ella Morrison (2), Clodagh Keane, Amy Connor (3), Romy Battle, Shauna McCann (5).