The start was as ideal as it could be for Webster Schroeder but as anyone in sports can tell you, it’s the finish that counts.
And it’s not that the Warriors aren’t aware of that. But it’s a helpless feeling when a team like Aquinas kicks into gear to render fruitless all efforts to stop it. That’s what happened Saturday night at Finger Lakes Community College as the Lil Irish found their stride in the second quarter and rode that momentum to a 55-44 win in the Section V Class AA championship.
“Our shots weren’t falling, they put pressure on us and turnovers killed us,” Schroeder coach Cody Mrozek said.
The surface stats explain a lot. After being held to just five points in the first quarter, No. 3 seed Aquinas (22-1) scored 18, 13 and 19 in the remaining three. So a 15-5 lead for No. 4 Schroeder (17-7) that had the east side of the FLCC gym rocking going into the second quarter was soon silenced.
Tournament MVP AJ Orr and Molly O’Toole each scored eight points in the second quarter. O’Toole hit a pair of 3-pointers, the second of which was the final bucket of the quarter that made it a 24-23 game favoring Schroeder at halftime.
And when Orr drove the lane to open the third for a basket, the 25-24 lead was the first for Aquinas since Loren Green’s 3-pointer to open the game. Aquinas never trailed again and Orr’s drive was the first of many for Aquinas once Schroeder switched from its zone defense to a man-to-man look.
“I have five girls who can put it on the deck and get to the rim,” Aquinas coach Mark Loria said.
Mrozek did not disagree.
“That helped us and hurt us,” she said. “They were able to drive and draw fouls.”
To her point, Aquinas took just two free throws in the first half. In the second, it took 15.
And of those 15, 12 came in the fourth quarter, which helped keep the Warriors in check.
The biggest lead for Aquinas in the third quarter was 36-30 following a Jade Harvey bucket, but Schroeder rallied to tie the score twice early in the fourth. Addison Morgan’s basket for Schroeder tied the score, 40-40, but Aquinas freshman Carle Thomas nailed a key 3-pointer and Orr followed with a pair of baskets with about 2 minutes to go and that gave Aquinas a 47-40 lead.
From there, the Aquinas defense allowed just four more Schroeder points and all of those were free throws.
“We realized that it was our defense that was going to carry us,” Loria said. “We stress active hands and active feet, get in the passing lanes and force them to make bad decisions.”
Schroeder didn’t score a point in the final 1:31 while Aquinas went 4-for-8 from the line down the stretch to seal its second straight title.
“It feels good,” said Orr. “They put us in AA and we proved we’re the best in Section V.”
For Loria, the title is a literal blessing. He said he suffered a heart attack nine months ago and was understandably emotional in celebrating a championship.
“Every day was a challenge,” he said. “But by God’s grace, he brought us to the finish line and I am so blessed.”
All-Tournament Team: AJ Orr MVP (Aquinas), Gabriela Esposito (Pittsford Mendon), Mallory Heise (Hilton), Loren Green (Aquinas), Addison Morgan (Webster Schroeder), Molly O’Toole (Aquinas), Bria Watkins (Webster Schroeder).
Section V Class AA championship
Aquinas 55, Webster Schroeder 44
AQUINAS (22-1): Carle Thomas 1 0-0 3, Julionna Knugwa 0 0-0 0, Loren Green 2 3-4 8, AJ Orr 9 3-9 21, Jade Harvey 4 1-3 9, Samiyah Wright 0 0-0 0, Molly O’Toole 5 1-2, 14. Totals: 21 8-18 55. 3-point goals: O’Toole 3, Thomas 1.
WEBSTER SCHROEDER (17-7): Avery Kroening 1 2-2 4, Addison Morgan 4 2-2 12, Kylie Clement 2 0-0 2, Mya Perales 0 0-0 0, Bria Watkins 8 9-11 26. Totals: 15 13-15 44. 3-point goals: Morgan 2, Watkins 1.
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