By Jeremy McDonald
jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
KEIZER, Ore.– The McNary Girls Basketball gave themselves a chance there after three quarters to go and win a ball game Saturday afternoon against Sherwood.
The Celtics rallied from down 19-11 in the second quarter, trailing 23-25 at the halftime break before eventually taking their first lead of the game three minutes into the third quarter at 28-27. The momentum from the 17-8 run continued as McNary slowly began to build a lead against the Bowmen in the non-league contest, leading at their largest of four with 48.5 seconds left in the frame. A pair of Aubrey Adams free throws put the Celts ahead 36-32 in the final minute of the third stanza.
“We’re still putting those pieces that go together to play with the kind of chemistry that we show here and there and the kind of unity that I think we need to be really successful for the whole game,” said Dunn. “We worked this week on our defensive intensity, on our closeouts, being in the passing lanes, things like that. The more intense and physical we are on defense, the more it creates a better offense for us, too.”
Basketball can be tough sometimes, and as the old adage goes, it’s a game of runs. And just as McNary was looking to keep momentum going into the fourth, Sherwood closed out the frame on a 5-0 run to take a 37-36 lead into the fourth. The Bowmen run gave the squad some wind in their sail as their lead steadily grew, and they began to pull away from McNary to start the fourth quarter.
Sherwood opened the fourth quarter with three-straight three-pointers and got a pair of buckets to fall after that to turn what was a one-point lead to start the frame, now was a 49-36 lead 4:05 left in the game in favor of the road team.
It’s a good lesson, though, for the Celtics. They wanted this tough preseason schedule to test them. They wanted to be prepared for what is to come with the Capital City Classic and the POA Tournament in Portland as well as the always tough Central Valley Conference slate that they always have. It’s just a matter of learning from it and improving.
“We signed up for a tough preseason for a reason because those are the lessons that we want to learn early. It’s what we talked about after the game, basketball is a game of runs and at some point, you got to stop the bleeding and you got to move on from the run, not to let it get in your head,” said Dunn. “I think we let it affect morale, and it affects how we played together. But it’s a good lesson early on, the third game of the season and hopefully as we progress down the line with the tournaments that are going to be tough, the league that’s going to be tough, those things aren’t going to take us out of a game like it did today.”
Adams led McNary with ten points, and Sofie Schurr contributed another nine in the 55-41 defeat Saturday evening. McNary will be at the Capital City Class Friday, where they’ll play Grants Pass at 4 pm at Chemeketa Community College.
Photos By Jeremy McDonald
