After staying within striking distance throughout the game, the Garfield G-Men girls’ basketball team seized their opportunity in the fourth quarter, rallying in the final minutes to beat Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference Grey Tier and Portage County rival Southeast 53-46 last Friday evening at the JAG Fieldhouse in Garrettsville.
“This was a big win for our girls,” said Coach Aaron Gilbert. “I felt okay being down six at halftime. They are very streaky with how they play so we were able to capitalize on their turnovers. We had big contributions.”
It was another Portage County duel against the Pirates that went down to the wire, something that has become a common occurrence whenever Garfield (2-1, 2-0) faces them, as although they are league foes, the Portage County rivalry stretches further back before the days of the MVAC.
“You can ask anybody in the area,” noted the 19-year coach. “When the two of us play, something is on the line, and it is going to be a close game. The blowouts don’t happen in this game. It is just the way this game is played.”
After Southeast mounted a 17-6 advantage after the first period, the G-Men chipped away at the lead, outscoring the Pirates by a 27-20 margin in the next two periods to only trail 37-33 entering the fourth quarter.
Gilbert said that once the G-Men took the lead, they would most likely not relinquish it and complete the comeback.
“Every time we would score a bucket, we kept giving up a bucket,” he acknowledged. “We just kept going back-and-forth and all of a sudden we got a couple of strings of stops and we hit some easy buckets.”
According to senior guard Kaelyn Tasker, the first big run of the final period by either team would set the tone down the stretch.
“Coach Gilbert said at the start of the third quarter it is going to be a 6-0 run, them or us, a run for them will make us call a timeout and a run for us will make them call a timeout,” added the 5-foot-3 senior. “I think we all wanted it so badly.”
The G-Men met the challenge, going on a 5-0 run to take a 38-37 advantage, marking their first lead of the game since going ahead 5-4 in the first period.
Southeast responded by engineering a 6-0 surge, taking a 43-37 lead into the final minutes of the fourth quarter.
Senior forward Mandy Cardinal, who had only scored six points in the first three quarters, keyed another big run, scoring five consecutive points on a strong drive to the basket and a 3-point shot from the top of the key, once again tying the game at 43-43.
Garfield used a full-court press to apply pressure on the Pirates throughout the fourth period and it paid dividends, forcing Southeast into committing seven turnovers and speeding up the pace of the game in the final minutes.
Tasker said that Garfield found success with a full-court pressure defense because of their physical style of play.
“I think we sped them up nicely,” she noted. “They were getting scared, and I think it showed on the court and I think it led to making little mistakes and we were picking them up. It suits us well.”
After the 6-foot Cardinal fueled the G-Men to tie the game, Tasker delivered some clutch shots, making some well-time off-ball cuts to the rim and scoring six points in the fourth quarter to lead Garfield to its first league victory of the season in addition to making a statement in the process.
“It is all my teammates,” said Tasker, who scored 10 points and grabbed five rebounds. “I can’t get open without my teammates.”
After surrendering 17 points in the opening quarter to Southeast, who were paced by junior forward Jenna Canale’s eight points in that frame, Garfield’s defense stiffened, only allowing 27 points in the final three periods.
“We grew up on Friday night,” Gilbert said. “I think we had a lot of kids that we have been asking to do things and they finally stepped up and did what we knew they were able to do. I think it is gratifying for them and gratifying for me. I told them in the locker room, this is why we coach them so hard to see if they can handle pressure situations like this.”
After a road game against MVAC Grey Tier foe Liberty on Monday night and a road game against league foe Newton Falls on Thursday evening, Garfield will return to the court and host league rival Crestview on Dec. 22 in the JAG Fieldhouse a 6:15 p.m.
