Lady Saints Basketball

Parents and players, please note that Monday’s practice at Crossroads MS will begin at 6:00 (not 6:30 as originally planned).  This will allow us to review video of the HNJ game before we start practice.  We will wrap up at 8:00 as planned.

HNJ raced out to a 23 – 13 half-time lead over the Saints.  St. Theresa fought back in the second half and at one point cut the lead to 3 points, but that was as close as the Saints would come.  Both teams scored 14 points in the 2nd half so the early 10 point lead was the story in this game.  Jenna Mueller had 11 points in the loss.

Lots of things going on with St. Theresa basketball.  Here’s the run down:

Trinity Youth Night: This coming Friday, Trinity’s Girls’ Basketball program holds their annual CYO Youth night.  The JV game starts at 6:00; varsity game follows.  All varsity basketball players are asked to wear their Band of Sisters shirts and meet the coaches in the gym by 5:45.  Lets get together and cheer on our former Lady Saints (Bri Betz-White, Maddie Castelli, Alex Lund, Miranda Nixon, and Angela Rossi) and the rest of the Lady Shamrocks as they take on CD East.

Knight of Columbus Free Throw Competition: This Saturday, St. Theresa’s K of C will hold their annual free throw contest.  The K of C is an important supporter of the athletic association, our kids, and our parish.  ALL varsity players are expected to participate in the contest (trust me, we can use the extra foul shooting) according to the schedule which can be found here:

K of C Free Throw Competition

CYO vs Cancer: The annual CYO fund raiser is underway to raise money for the fight against cancer via shirt sales.  An order form is available below and has been e-mailed by the athletic association to parents.  During the month of February, we wear these shirts during warm-ups at league games to show our support.  Please consider ordering a long sleeve pink shirt for your daughter.  The coaches have been asked to collect our team’s order forms and turn them in by Sunday, January 22nd (checks made payable to: STPAA and submitted at the time of the order) so I would ask that ALL forms and checks be turned in the night of the K of C free throw contest.     

CYO_Making_a_Difference_Order_Form_2012[1]

Beef and Beer: It’s that time again.  Our annual Beef and Beer event (Saturday, January 28th) is a critical component of the athletic association’s fund raising efforts on behalf of our kids.  Just as one example, the new white uniforms our varsity girls are wearing this season came with a price tag of $114.00 per set.  Beef and Beer helps provide funds for the association for the various costs associated with running the program.  It’s also a great night out and a chance for all of us adults to get together and brag on your daughters.  Please come out and support the STPAA.  Ron Borza can be contacted for tickets at ronborza@comcast.net or by phone at 412-897-6610.

Game Round-up:  It was a busy four day stretch for the Lady Saints.  For the third time, St. Catherine bested the Saints in a 34 – 41 loss.  Too many turnovers against a good team proved to be the Saints’ downfall.  At home on Saturday, St. Theresa jumped back on the right track with a solid 41 – 32 win over St. Joe’s.  Jenna Mueller dialed up 17 points in the victory.  On the road in Carlisle on Sunday, St. Theresa used a platoon system to down St. Pat’s 36 – 19.  Rileigh Devine and Hannah Deppen had 8 points each and EVERY player on the squad contributed in the win.

With a 4 & 1 record for the weekend, the Lady Saints showed they have the talent to compete with anyone.  In the opening game on Friday night, the Saints blew by St. Thomas 37 – 9 with a combination of tough man/man defense and swift transition. 

Saturday, St. Theresa let a golden opportunity slip through their fingers when they blew an 11 point lead versus HNJ and went down 34 – 40.  That loss made for tough sledding for the Lady Saints, who then had to struggle through two more games in less than four hours.

In the first of those two games, St. Theresa took on St. Margaret and almost repeated their mistake from the HNJ game.  Leading by 12 going into the 4th quarter, the Lady Saints saw the wheels come off the defense behind a furious comeback attempt by their opponent.  For the second game in a row St. T’s allowed 16 points in the final 8 minutes, but this time managed to hold on to a 43 – 39 close call.

In the third game of the day, St Theresa used a 20 point 2nd quarter explosion to blow open a close game enroute to a 36 – 22 win over IHM.  This set the stage for a showdown on Sunday with St. Simon & Jude for 5th place overall out of 16 teams in the tournament and winner of the consolation bracket.  A well-rested Lady Saints team jumped all over the Explorers, building a 17 -8 halftime lead, holding them scoreless in the 3rd quarter, and finishing strong for a 30 – 14 victory.

To go along with the 5th place/Consolation Bracket championship, St. Theresa also placed a player on the prestigious All-Tournament team.  Congratulations to Rebecca Reilly, who joins the ranks of other Lady Saints stand-outs from previous All-Tourney teams like Alex Lund and Briana Betz-White.  Also garnering votes from opposing coaches and tournament sponsors for their efforts during the tournament were Jenna Mueller, Rileigh Devine, and Bella Ricci.

Holy Name of Jesus was the overall tournament victor, with a 41 – 34 win over Villa Maria Academy.  St. Leo took 3rd place by downing St. Joe’s of Hanover 35 – 21.

Thanks again to all our parents who did such an excellent job supporting the team.  From meals and snacks, fruit and drinks, to good old fashioned cheering the team on, the girls had great support the entire weekend.  It should be noted that the coaching staff is extremely proud of the way the players represented St. Theresa at the tournament.  Whether it was the hotel staff, the tournament officials/workers, or the PIAA officials, Coach Cicak repeatedly received comments about how well behaved our kids were and what a class act St. Theresa’s team is.  That kind of character-check is just as important as the score of our games now, and much more important in the future when it comes to life lessons.

Through Sunday’s game, the St. Theresa season record stands at 12 wins and 4 loses.