Mahoney leads LH girls past Ringgold
A blood-speckled court, 37 personal fouls and a dramatic subplot were all signs that Laurel Highlands and Ringgold made much ado of first place for girls’ Section 2-AAAA. Somewhere in the hodgepodge, were the Fillies dominating the visiting Lady Rams, 58-36, to gain the top spot in the section.
“It was a physical ball game,” said LH head coach Rick Hauger. “Our kids went about their business and did what they needed to do.”
Ringgold’s three fast-break points tied the game at eight. The two teams were seemingly ready for a back-and-forth game until Ringgold’s Renae Dunseath caught an elbow to the face that paused the game 10 minutes.
When play resumed, Beth Garbutt and Lauren Mahoney sank three-pointers and the Fillies never looked back.
“We got the elbow to the face and never recovered,” said Ringgold coach Steve Fiecht, who saw the injury as decisive blow to his team’s momentum.
“They came out pushing and shoving us and we didn’t answer the call.”
Mahoney nailed two more from behind the arc during the game to give her a game-high 17 points. Her two scores on consecutive possessions gave the Fillies a momentous start to the second half.
Garbutt went about her business dominating the boards while tossing in 11 points, including a tip-in at the first half buzzer.
“Beth was dominant,” Hauger said. “It seemed like every time we needed her to get a rebound she would get it.”
Meanwhile, Ringgold’s offense sputtered and the team could not execute its offense.
“We didn’t do anything,” Fiecht said. “He had 15 total rebounds and I think we ran two offensive plays.”
Brittany Warren led Ringgold (5-2, 9-9) with 12 points, while no other Lady Rams were able to score more than six points.
“We weren’t playing as a team,” Fiecht said. “That destroyed what we were trying to do.”
The Fillies’ Deena Blanc and Lauren Slampak scored ten points, respectively.
“It was a total team effort,” Hauger said. “Our kids hung in there and were very competitive.”
The Fillies (6-1, 14-4) are now in the driver’s seat in the section, but according to Hauger, he doesn’t want his players to get ahead of themselves.
“We have to play one game at a time,” Hauger said. “(The game) doesn’t mean anything at this point. We still have competitive section play.
“For tonight, we are happy.”