Boocks Free Throw With No Time Left Helps A-C Valley Spoil 41-Point Game From Obenrader

Chris Rossetti

Chris Rossetti

Published January 21, 2017 5:20 am
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FOXBURG, Pa. (D9Sports) — With no one on the line around her, Olivia Boocks hit one free throw with no time on the clock to lift A-C Valley to a 65-64 win over visiting North Clarion.

Boocks, only a sophomore, hit three total free throws in the final 17.4 seconds with her last one, that came after she was fouled trying a desperation shot as time expired.

She talked about the free throw and the win after the game.

Tori Obenrader tied the game at 64 when she hit a 3-pointer with 3.3 seconds left from the top of the right circle.

A-C Valley elected to play it out, and Boocks, who was the Hager Paving Player of the Game, pushed the ball up court and seemed to only have a desperation shot. But a foul was called on the She-Wolves on the shot, which obviously didn’t please North Clarion head coach Terry Dreihaup.

“I’m very disappointed with the call,” Dreihaup said. “I was told I needed to learn the game. Unfortunately, the call didn’t go our way. It went theirs. They won it on a foul shot. Congratulations to them.”

The controversial call spoiled an otherwise fantastic performance for Obenrader, who had perhaps the best offensive night of her career. The junior netted a career-high 41 points, breaking her previous career high of 33 set Jan. 13 at Keystone, while grabbing 16 rebounds. She hit six 3-pointers and at one point between the end of the first half and late in the third quarter scored 16 consecutive points for North Clarion.

“She was everything, but unfortunately our team lost the ball game,” Dreihaup said. “She could have scored every points, but unfortunately when you lose you lose.”

A-C Valley’s resilience had a lot to do with the Lady Falcons victory.

Coming off a disappointing loss to Cranberry Wednesday and with only a two-person bench because of a couple of players at the PIAA Competitive Spirit Championships, the Lady Falcons battled all night in a seesaw game that saw 15 lead changes and five ties.

North Clarion, which has lost two in a row after starting the year 12-0, took a seven-point advantage, 54-47, on a 3-pointer by Michaela Higgins, who had 14 points while hitting four 3-pointers, early in the fourth quarter.

But A-C Valley answered with a 12-1 run that included a pair of offensive rebound putbacks by Ellie Thompson, who scored six of her team-high 19 points during the spurt to take a 59-55 lead with 3:32 to play.

The smaller Falcons were able to play fairly evenly with North Clarion on the board getting outrebounded by just eight, 43-35, while hauling in 12 offensive rebounds leading to 18 points.

“Hats off to A-C Valley,” Dreihaup said. They outplayed us. They out rebounded us. They basically won the game. Good job for them.”

Kylee Eaton was responsible for nine of the rebounds including six offensive boards, three in the first quarter alone, while scoring 15 points, nine in the first quarter, with nine of the tallies coming off offensive boards.

Thompson added eight rebounds with three on the offensive end.

Trailing by four, Cassie Wagner and Obenrader helped rally North Clarion.

Wagner hit her first shot since the first quarter with a 15-foot jumper from the left side with 3:17 left to make it 59-57, and Obenrader hit both ends of a one-and-one with 2:53 to go ti tie the game at 59.

Obenrader then hit two more free throws with 2:05 to play to put North Clarion back ahead, 61-59, but Thompson grabbed her biggest offensive rebound of the game off a missed shot by Eaton scoring the putback and getting fouled with 28.4 seconds to play to give A-C Valley a 62-61 lead.

Obenrader then was called for a questionable travel with around 20 seconds left, and Boocks hit both free throws after North Clarion was forced to foul to give A-C Valley a 64-61 lead with 17.4 to play.

North Clarion, though, was able to find Obenrader for the tying shot, the She-Wolves 10th triple of the game.

“We said whoever had the open look needed to take the shot,” Dreihaup said. “She had the open look, and she nailed it. It was a great shot for her. She played a heck of a ball game. We just need to do a better job of rebounding.”

While North Clarion hit 10 threes (on 35 shots), but only three after halftime, against the A-C Valley zone defense, the She-Wolves might have settled for the long shot a little too much for Dreihaup’s taste.

“I told them in the lockerroom (at halftime) that we were living and dying by the 3-pointer,” Dreihaup said. “It eventually wasn’t going to happen anymore.”

The game had all the making of a great one from the start with the lead changing hands 10 times in the first quarter alone before North Clarion took a 20-18 lead after one on an Obenrader 3-pointer at the first-quarter horn. The junior scored 13 points in the first quarter.

The second quarter was more of the game with North Clarion getting the lead to five, 25-20, only to watch A-C Valley rally with a 6-0 run that ended on a bucket by Cami McNany that put the Lady Falcons ahead 28-27 midway through the quarter.

But Obenrader scored five of North Clarion’s final eight points in the quarter including another buzzer beater, this time on an offensive rebound and putback, to give the She-Wolves a 35-33 lead.

Obenrader’s final basket of the first half started the streak that saw her score 16 straight points for North Clarion including the She-Wolves first 14 of the second half.

But while Obenrader was dominating offensively, A-C Valley was getting balanced scoring from five different players in the third quarter to stay within four, 51-47, going to the fourth.

When Higgins hit a 3-pointer 16 seconds into the final eight minutes to put North Clarion ahead seven, 54-47, it looked like the She-Wolves might pull away.

But the two offensive putbacks by Thompson helped A-C Valley close to within one, and then Brooke Irwin hit her only basket of the game with 5:58 to go to put the Lady Falcons back in front setting up the exciting finish.

The win improved A-C Valley to 7-4 on the year. The Lady Falcons are back in action Tuesday at Clarion-Limestone.

North Clarion falls to 12-2 with the loss. The She-Wolves return to the court Tuesday when they host Redbank Valley.

A-C VALLEY 65, NORTH CLARION 64

Score by Quarters

North Clarion 20 15 16 13
A-C Valley 18 15 14 18

NORTH CLARION — 64

Abbey Gatesman 1 0-2 2, Tori Obenrader 15 5-6 41, Michaela Higgins 5 0-0 14, Cassie Wagner 2 0-0 4, Ally Carll 1 1-2 3, Gabby Carll 0 0-0 0. Totals 24 6-10 64.

A-C VALLEY — 65

Ellie Thompson 9 1-1 19, Annie Viertel 4 0-0 9, Allison Sherman 0 0-0 0, Brooke Irwin 1 0-0 2, Cami McNany 3 0-2 7, Olivia Boocks 5 3-4 13, Kylee Eaton 7 1-2 15. Totals 29 5-9 65.

Three-pointers: North Clarion 10 (Obenrader 6, Higgins 4). A-C Valley 2 (Viertel, McNany).

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