Like a spirited distance runner, the Lady Dragons used a finishing kick to pull away from their opponents in the closing minutes of a Friday night basketball game in Goshen. The girls outscored the Gladiators 50-34 to knock them from the unbeaten ranks.
It was a physical game, with lots of fouls and collisions. At one point, Ali Thorpe sat on the Dragon bench with an ice pack on her head. She had plunged into the stands while grappling for the ball.
Ali was involved in the play that started the final turnaround. She made a steal at mid-court and drove straight to the basket. While the shot bounded off the rim, the ball went to Jillian Artrip, who gave the Dragons a 26-25 advantage. A moment later, Renee Briggs fed Jillian under the basket and the Cornwall lead was starting to grow.
The girls moved at top speed throughout the night, as Coach Chris Miller kept shuttling players in and out of the game. These were seamless substitutions. The Dragons never suffered when any of their starters were sitting on the bench.
Goshen scored the first four points of the game, and might have taken command if the visitors weren’t on target from the free throw line. The girls made their first six foul shots to stay even.
Once Cornwall moved ahead in the second half, the team opened up its offense. Renee Briggs nailed a pair of threes, and Alex Jurgens and Madison Vinett started driving to the basket. Alex led the team in rebounds, and when she was on the bench, Kristin Coleman and Cathy Eliasson made up for her absence.
The victory followed a 50-46 loss at home to Warwick. After being idle for more than two weeks, the girls got off to a slow start on Jan. 8. They trailed by 16 points at the half, and though they rallied (as they did against Goshen), they couldn’t catch up to their opponents.
2 GAMES – Points: Briggs 30, Artrip 25, Jurgens 16, Vinett 16, Thorpe 3, Darcy 2, Eliasson 2, J. Hogan 2. Threes: Briggs 5, Artrip 3, Thorpe 1. Free throws: Briggs 9-13, Jurgens 6-8.
