Lakers upset J-T at home
BY CHRIS GILL THE LEADER

JAS0N COX/THE LEADER Hammondsport's Sylvia Sable goes up for a layup Monday, Jan. 22, as Jasper-Troupsburg's Katie Wyant defends.

HAMMONDSPORT - As far Jasper-Troupsburg and Hammondsport were concerned, the sectional tournament began Monday, Jan. 22.

If that were really the case, the Wildcats' season would have ended in Hammondsport's gy m Monday night as the Lakers pulled out a 52-44 win against third-ranked Jasper- Troupsburg (12-2). Hammondsport (13-2) entered the game ranked 11th in Class D and will try to avenge an early-season loss to Canisteo-Greenwood (12-2) on Wednesday.

If the Lakers carry over Monday's level of play, they would emerge as the No. 1 seed in the Steuben County Athletic Association tournament which begins in two weeks.

"The place was electric tonight with the fans and it was good to see the girls step up in a big-game environment," said Hammondsport coach Alan Perry. "J-T is a great team, only lost one game and we're happy to play with them and pull out the win."

Hammondsport trailed only once in Monday's game, midway through the first quarter, but could not shake Jasper-Troupsburg until late in the game. The two teams were never separated by more than seven points for three-plus quarters, and the pressure defense both teams employed created an intense atmosphere.

Seventeen fouls were called in the first half alone and frustration was evident in the players' mannerisms, facial expressions and sometimes their deeds - you'll get that when two league rivals who are virtual clones of each other butt heads.

"It was so nerve wracking, the score going back and forth, leading by only so many points, looking at the clock and seeing only 20 seconds had passed by," Hammondsport senior forward Carlie Brown said.

Down by six points with two seconds left in the second quarter, Katie Wyant connected on a running 3- pointer that banked in to pull within three points. To that point, JT was 0-for-5 from beyond the arc and struggled to get its outside shots to fall. The Wildcats are notorious for hitting key 3-pointers, and Wyant's desperation trey at the buzzer looked like a sign for the second half.

However, Hammondsport remembered the Wildcats from last season.

"I heard Friday when they played Addison the Wyants each had one 3-pointer each, so I had high hopes of doing that tonight," Brown said. "After last year, knowing we got out on them and couldn't hit too many 3s, we knew we could stop them."

Without the deep threat, J-T struggled to come back and when Jenna Presley sparked a 6-0 run early in the third quarter for a ninepoint lead for Hammondsport, the Lakers sealed off the perimeter, allowing one 3-point shot in the second half (2-for-13 overall). That and creating key turnovers tells the story.

"We just got in their face. They're not used to seeing man-to-man like that in our league," Brown said.

B r o w n p r o v i d e d Hammondsport with consistent scoring throughout, totaling a game-high 20 points with six rebounds, while Presley scored 10 points from all over. Sylvia Sable was clutch in the first half, knocking down all eight of her points from the corner in the first and second quarters, and Kelly Walling chipped in six points, two of which were critical to the Lakers' 6-0 run in the third.

Katie Wyant led Jasper- Troupsburg with 16 points, including a 3-pointer that pulled the Cats within six points in the fourth quarter, but McKenzie Kraus and Lorin VanSkiver did the heavy lifting in the paint, combining for 25 points. Meghan Wyant, blanketed on the perimeter all night, finished with six points.

Monday's win created a two-way tie for second in the SCAA, with Canisteo- Greenwood now the hunted. The Redskins are ranked 13th in the state in Class C and handed Hammondsport one of its two losses this season.