The WPIAL girls' Class AAAA championship game between New Castle and Oakland Catholic yesterday set a standard for championship-game scoring futility.
And much to the chagrin of the Eagles, that was exactly the way New Castle had it planned.
New Castle, which is one of the top defensive teams in the WPIAL, used its intense man-to-man pressure to squeeze the life out of the talented offense of yet another opponent.
The Red Hurricane held the Eagles to just eight first-half points and battled their way to an ugly, yet effective, 36-32 victory. It was the Red Hurricane's first WPIAL title and the second consecutive season the Eagles have lost in the championship game.
"The way we play may look chaotic but it is all about the pressure we put on other teams," New Castle Coach LuAnn Grybowski said. "We just keep coming after you and make you play every possession and work for everything you get. With the kids I have, I know the way they are and we couldn't play a zone or do anything different than just line up and come after you man to man.
"These kids played against a great team and showed a lot of heart and a lot character and never backed down. And that's the really the key -- we weren't intimidated."
The 36 points scored by the Red Hurricane represented the lowest point total by the winner of the Class AAAA championship game. Also, the two teams combined to score only 68 points, which is the lowest combined point total for the Class AAAA game as well.
And the 32 points scored by the Eagles, who came into the game averaging 56 points per game, represented the second-lowest point total scored by a team in the Class AAAA game. In the 1990 title game, Elizabeth Forward scored only 26 points in a loss to Penn Hills.
The key for the Hurricane was its defensive pressure, especially the effort of senior guard Ashley Wise and freshman forward Jalessa Sams. Wise was given the assignment of slowing down Eagles point guard Sarah Bucar while Sams battled Eagles forward Eve Pyle, who is the Oakland Catholic's top scorer.
Bucar scored 13 points, but was held in check for most of the first three quarters. Pyle, meanwhile, never found her comfort zone and finished with only eight points, none of which came easy.
"Ashley is our top defensive player and we felt like Sarah Bucar is the key to their team," Grybowski said. "We knew if we could stop Bucar's penetration and make her work harder than she's used to, we'd have a chance to win the game. Sarah did score some points in the second half but, luckily, we had a 10-point lead and were able to hold on.
"And Jalessa is both strong and quick and she really played with a lot of intensity."
Sams said: "I was able to front her because I knew I had backside help. We're a team that thrives on being five as one, no stars, no individual glory, just everyone working and playing together. That's what makes us so tough to beat. We'll battle on every possession."
New Castle jumped on the Eagles early and didn't let up until the final buzzer.
The Hurricane closed the first quarter with a 10-1 run and led, 12-3, going into the second quarter. Points in the second quarter, however, were tough for both teams to come by, and when the dust cleared at halftime, New Castle's lead was only 16-8.
Oakland Catholic coach Rich Irr said that his team's slow start was a matter of missed opportunities, but he said some of it had to do with the intensity with which the Red Hurricane played.
"They came out more prepared to play a game of this magnitude. They wanted it more than we did," Irr said. "We knew they'd be physical, they'd put pressure on us and we knew they'd do all of the things they did to us. It was just a matter of starting out slow. We're a streaky offensive team and for some reason, lately, we haven't gotten off to fast starts on offense.
"In the second half, we put it together but we were already in a big hole."
New Castle led, 25-17, heading into the fourth quarter after both teams scored nine points in the third. The Hurricanes stretched their lead to 29-19 before Bucar led a furious rally from 3-point range. But New Castle never gave up the lead and made 9 of 12 free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
The Hurricane (24-4) plays Butler (14-11) in the first round of the PIAA playoffs Friday. Defending PIAA champion Oakland Catholic (23-5) will play Laurel Highlands (15-9).
Pam Panchak, Post-GazetteNew Castle's Maria Joseph attempts to drive past Oakland Catholic's Erica Prosser in the girls' Class AAAA final at the Palumbo Center/
Click photo for larger image.
First Published: February 29, 2004, 5:00 a.m.