By Dylan Butler
It was the little team that could against mighty St. Michael’s and big, bad Kia Vaughn.
And The Mary Louis Academy was 30 seconds away from pulling off the upset of the high school basketball season Monday in the Monsignor King tournament championship game.
But with Vaughn, a mammoth 6-foot-4 junior center, on the sideline after fouling out, 13-year-old Anjale Barrett scored on a driving layup and fellow freshman Tasha Harris added a pair of free throws for the Eagles in a 57-54 win at St. Thomas Aquinas in Brooklyn.
“We didn’t have one girl on the court (at the end of the game) who played varsity before this year, not one girl,” said Mary Louis coach Joe Lewinger. “I have chills up my spine. And no voice.”
That Mary Louis (8-7) was even in the game was a tremendous accomplishment, considering the Hilltoppers finished without point guard Meghan Cumiskey (jammed right ring finger), leading scorer Liza Gallo (sprained right ankle) and its only size as both Liz Flynn and Julia Serewko fouled out.
But there was freshman Casey Shevlin, pushing the ball up court against a double team with 8.8 seconds left in the game. She dribbled to her right and dished to Melissa Velez, who passed to Elyse Busch in the corner, but she couldn’t get the shot off in time.
“We were a little intimidated at first, but once we got out there it all came together,” said Shevlin, who had a season-high 17 points. “We came a long way and we were right there, too. We were up at one point and I think we could have beat them.”
Despite being tremendously undersized, Mary Louis did a great job of team rebounding, not allowing Vaughn easy touches around the basket. Vaughn, one of the most highly sought-after juniors in the country, still finished with a game-high 22 points and 19 rebounds, but that is because no one on the Hilltoppers could match her in size or bulk.
After dominating for much of the game, Vaughn was forced to watch the final 2:20 on the bench after Flynn drew her fifth foul on a drive to the basket. Flynn, who had 15 points and nine rebounds, drained both free throws and the Hilltoppers were within 51-50 and full of confidence.
“We could have taken them but I’m really proud of the way our team stepped up, and we got to the championship game when no one thought we could,” Flynn said.
Less than a minute later, Shevlin’s 16-footer gave Mary Louis its first lead since 7-6. On a drive to the basket, Barrett, the younger sister of Seton Hall standout Andre Barrett, drew the fifth foul on Flynn before two free throws by Shevlin put the Hilltoppers back in front, 54-53, with 1:09 left in the fourth quarter.
Just as she did at the Gauchos Gym in a last-second win over St. John Villa, Barrett drove to the basket to give St. Michael’s a 55-54 lead with 27.2 seconds left.
After Patricia Zillas traveled on the baseline with 13.2 seconds left, Barrett — who scored five of her seven points in the fourth quarter — went to the foul line with a chance to ice the game.
Barrett missed both foul shots, but Harris grabbed the offensive rebound and then scored both of her free throws as St. Michael’s (16-1) survived a major scare.
“I was upset about the way we played, but it took a lot of character for me to have three freshman guards out there in the last two minutes with Kia out of the game,” said St. Michael’s coach Apache Paschall. “And I was confident that we would be in a position to win.”
Sheepshead Bay 44, Stella Maris 36. Jennifer Anglero scored nine of her 18 points in the fourth quarter for Stella Maris (8-7) in the consolation round of the Monsignor King tournament Monday.
Mary Louis 61, Bishop Kearney 38. In the Monsignor King semifinals Sunday, Cumiskey had 15 points, Zillas had 12 points, including a pair of huge three-pointers, Flynn added 10 points and Serewko had a season-high eight points for the Hilltoppers, who avenged a two-point loss to Kearney earlier in the season. Welsh had 15 points and Jen Lawlor added 12 points for Kearney.
Mary Louis 44, Midwood 42. Flynn had six points, including the game-winning basket on a tap in with 0.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter for the Hilltoppers in the first round Saturday. Gallo had 13 points and Shevlin added 11 points for Mary Louis, while Melanie Murphy led Midwood with 15 points in the first round of the Monsignor King tournament.
Midwood 67, Stella Maris 34. Murphy, Maureen Marzano, Deborah Thomas and Jennifer Louie scored 10 points apiece for the Hornets, while Anglero had 16 points, eight rebounds and three steals for the Lady Flippers.
Christ the King 68, St. Francis Prep 51. In a battle for the top spot in the CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens Diocesan, the defending champion Royals easily kept their hold on first place. Tina Charles and Carrem Gay both registered double-doubles, Charles with 22 points and 15 rebounds and Gay with 14 points and 11 rebounds. CK improved to 13-1 overall and 6-0 in league play.
Archbishop Molloy 71, Cardinal Spellman 42. Jessica McEntee scored 20 points with 12 rebounds, and Rosalyn Gold-Onwude scored 24 points with 10 boards as Molloy easily cruised in this non-league win last week.
Christ the King 72, Lexington Catholic (Ky.) 56. The Royals got 15 points each from Charles and Gay in this win at the Hall of Fame Classic in Springfield, Mass.
Murry Bergtraum 61, St. Francis Prep 55. Gina Catherall’s 20 points led the Terriers, but it was not enough, as the defending PSAL champs got 16 from Epiphany Prince and 13 from Erica Morrow in this battle of city powers Jan. 14.
Archbishop Molloy 57, Bishop Kearney 50. Gold-Onwude and McEntee scored 16 and 14, respectively, for Molloy, while Maria Laterza and Maryann Welsh led Kearney with 14 apiece.
Christ the King 76, The Mary Louis Academy 38. Charles scored 16 and Meka Wertz contributed 15 for the Royals in this league win over the Hilltoppers last week.
— Anthony Bosco contributed to this story
Reach Associate Sports Editor Dylan Butler by email at TimesLedger@aol.com or call 718-229-0300, Ext. 143.
