Hall looks to re-establish her good reputation as AG girls start playoffs against Mount Lebanon in WPIAL
The one-game suspension of Loui Hall was burned up in the smoke of a non-conference loss to McKeesport last week, but the fire still burns for Albert Gallatin’s best player. Fourth-seeded Albert Gallatin (20-4) will play Mt. Lebanon (13-10) at eight o’clock tonight at Penn-Trafford in a WPIAL Class AAAA first-round playoff game.
Hall, the WPIAL’s second leading scorer, is looking for more than a big game and a win. She’s looking to re-establish her good reputation after being punished by the WPIAL for her actions during a game played Jan. 4 against Latrobe.
“I think she’ll maybe use it as motivation going into the playoffs to prove what kind of player she really is, not what some might be trying to portray her as lately,” said Albert Gallatin Coach Shea Fleenor.
Hall was suspended one game for kicking a Latrobe player in the stomach, a charge refuted by Fleenor.
“She wasn’t ejected from the game as it happened and I was given an explanation that there wasn’t any intent, that she didn’t mean to harm the girl,” he said. “And the first thing she said to me was that she was just trying to get her foot loose. She also said she was sorry. She’s not a dirty player. She rarely shows emotion whether she’s playing extremely well or whether she’s getting beat on. She just goes out and plays the game way it should be played.
“That’s what bothers her. After this whole thing, she’s worried people will be looking at her differently and they shouldn’t. She’s such a good kid.”
It’s been a rough year, physically, for the 6-foot senior forward. The Duquesne University recruit has been a target for teams attempting to stop Albert Gallatin. Hall’s scoring average of 31.2 points per game represents 57 percent of Albert Gallatin’s output. It’s resulted in 267 free throws for Hall, or close to 12 per game.
“She really got beat on a lot this year,” Fleenor said. “She’s the focal point of what teams want to stop and she never reacted to getting beat on.”
Against Latrobe, Fleenor said, film indicates that Hall attempted to pull her leg free three times. On the fourth pull, she broke free and made contact with the girl, who later said the kick fractured her sternum. The Latrobe player did return to the game in the fourth quarter.
“It’s over with and it hasn’t been a distraction. I haven’t allowed it to be,” Fleenor said. “We didn’t play our best in the game Loui missed but she wasn’t the only person missing. I missed that game, too, because my grandfather had passed away.”
Albert Gallatin lost at 18-6 McKeesport, 47-30. Its only other loss since Dec. 6 came at the hands of No. 1 seed Oakland Catholic, 82-41. Oakland Catholic is coached by Suzie McConnell Serio, wife of Mt. Lebanon coach Pete Serio.
“We didn’t have the greatest game in the world against Oakland Catholic and I’m sure in that house there’s some conversing going on,” Fleenor said. “Obviously, Mt. Lebanon doesn’t have the caliber of player, one through 15, that Oakland Catholic has. Nobody has that kind of talent. But obviously Mt. Lebanon will try some of the same things. They’ll certainly try to pressure us. That’s the biggest thing.”
Mt. Lebanon is led by senior guard Katie Kestler, who averages close to 16 points per game. Joanie Plake and Felicia Johnson are also scoring threats.
“We’ve played pretty good defense this year. It’s surprised some people,” Fleenor said. “We’ve had go-rounds with some of the best guards in the WPIAL, courtesy of our section, so we should be prepared for this one.”