Jan 7, 2011 By Adam Brewer, For The Greene County Messenger 3 min read

CARMICHAELS – The Geibel Catholic girls basketball squad overcame a first-quarter deficit with a 15-0 spree in the second quarter and held on in the latter stages of the fourth to pull out a 52-49 non-section win over Carmichaels Tuesday night.

The Lady Gators (2-6) snapped a three-game losing streak and also avenged a home loss to Carmichaels from 12 days ago.

“We were down 13-0 the first time we played these guys, and we knew that if we ran our sets and shoot the ball, we could come back in the game,” Geibel coach Pat Klocek said. “We made some big shots from the outside. We have had trouble making shots.

“If you can score early, everybody starts to relax and the shots come easier. It was our best game defensively, the most consistent and determined. We practice a lot shooting threes, and it was our best game at shooting the three as well.”

In the first eight minutes, it was all Lady Mikes (5-4) as they started with an 8-2 run and held a 15-8 lead at the end of the opening stanza.

Carmichaels built its lead to 19-10 in the early juncture of the second period, but Geibel exploded on a 15-0 run, started by a trey from Hannah Lazuka.

Lazuka then scored on a fast-break layup to give the Gators their second lead of the night, 20-19. Lazuka had 11 of her 19 points in the second frame, as Geibel held a 27-24 lead at halftime.

The Gators garnered a 13-6 scoring edge in the third quarter and maintained a 40-30 lead, going into the final eight minutes.

In the fourth, Geibel built its largest lead of the game, 47-33, after a three-pointer by Brittany Rulli. Rulli had seven pivotal points in the final stanza and finished the game with 11.

The Mikes battled back after being down by 14, as they countered with an 11-0 run, capped off by a shot from beyond the arc by Anna Cree to cut the Gators’ edge to 47-44 with 2:06 left.

“We were more aggressive at both ends in the fourth quarter during that spree,” Carmichaels coach Jim Lane said. “That is what you have to do the whole 32 minutes of the game. You can’t just bring it in the fourth; you have to be steady and consistent the whole game against good teams.”

After two buckets by Geibel, Carmichaels remained in the game after an old-fashioned three-point play by Morgan Berardi that closed the gap to 51-47 with 39 seconds remaining.

Lazuka only recorded one point in the fourth quarter, but it was one big point, as she hit one of two free throws to give the Gators some breathing room down the stretch.

“Hannah is asked to do a lot,” Klocek said. “She handles the ball for us at point, and we need her to get into double-figures and create some easy shots for her teammates.

“In the second half when they started to double team her, she was able to find the open player underneath and get them lay-ups.”

Despite the loss, Carmichaels had three scorers in double-figures, led by Amanda Brown’s 13 points.

Berardi ended her night with 11, and Erica Britner chipped in with 10.

“Give Geibel a lot of credit,” Carmichaels coach Jim Lane said. “They brought their A-game tonight and played hard. They are well coached. The only thing I can hope is that we learned from our mistakes and get better when we resume section play.”