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Sports

St. John Vianney Girls Fall to Neptune in Shore Conference Tournament Basketball Final

The St. John Vianney girls basketball team battled Neptune to the end in a 58-47 loss in the Shore Conference Tournament final.

     St. John Vianney had its share of open looks at the basket, but in the end some missed opportunities on offense and the dynamic, Rutgers-bound duo of Neptune senior guards Shakena Richardson and Syessence proved to be too much for the Lancers to overcome in a 57-48 loss in the Shore Conference Tournament final on Friday night.

     Richardson and Davis combined for 39 points, 30 of which came in the second half, to deny the Lancers’ brilliant senior class its final shot at grabbing a Shore Conference title. Meanwhile, Neptune became the first public school to win three straight SCT titles since the Scarlet Fliers did it from 1987-89, and became the first school overall to win three straight since St. John Vianney won six in a row from 1994-99.

     Senior forward Katie O’Reilly, a Lehigh recruit, led St. John Vianney with 15 points to go with six rebounds as the Lancers suffered just their second loss of the season. Senior point guard Jackie Kates, a University of Pennsylvania recruit, and American University recruit Arron Zimmerman, a senior center, each added 14 points in the loss for the Holmdel school.

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     “They did a great job in this tournament to get to this point,’’ St. John Vianney head coach Dawn Karpell said about her team. “We played through a tough bracket, and we did so well the other night (in a win over St. Rose in the semifinals). I just felt like we didn't keep our composure consistently through the game tonight.’’

     Both teams struggled mightily on offense in the first half under the bright lights of the Multipurpose Activities Center at Monmouth University to go into the locker room tied at 16. St. John Vianney shot 7-for-22 from the field and committed 10 turnovers, while Neptune misfired in a 7-for-32 shooting performance with 12 turnovers. The Scarlet Fliers were able to generate more shot attempts by outrebounding St. John Vianney 23-16, including grabbing nine offensive rebounds.

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     “Defensively, we did a pretty good, solid job,’’ Karpell said. “On the defensive glass, we could've maybe done a little bit better job. Offensively, we just didn't keep our composure about us, and we left some opportunities out there.’’

     Davis had three fouls at halftime after picking up a cheap one in a fight for a rebound with four seconds left in the half, but St. John Vianney could not capitalize on that in the second half.

     The Lancers came out and seized the lead in the third quarter when Kates buried a 3-pointer for a 19-16 advantage, but Neptune outscored them 16-8 in the rest of the quarter to grab a 32-27 lead heading into the final period. Richardson nailed three 3-pointers, including one in the closing seconds of the quarter, and Davis added another to key the surge, while St. John Vianney struggled to get anything to fall from the perimeter.

     Kates had been doing a solid job on the explosive Richardson, but once Kates picked up her third foul, Karpell had to switch her to another player, and Richardson pounced.

     Another 3-pointer by Kates, who was the only player to knock down any shots from behind the arc, cut the lead to 32-30 early in the fourth quarter. However, Neptune responded with a 6-0 run to make it 38-30 with 5:34 left in the game.

     After a bucket by O’Reilly cut it to 38-33, Neptune went on a 10-0 run to all but end the suspense and push the lead to 48-33.

     “A couple times when they ballooned it up there in the early fourth, we lost focus for a few possessions,’’ Karpell said.

     While it was a disappointing result for the Lancers, there is always the chance that they could see Neptune again. The two teams met in last year’s NJSIAA Tournament of Champions final, with Neptune prevailing in that game as well, but there is a good chance they could meet again in the TOC this year.

     St. John Vianney is a heavy favorite to win its fourth straight Non-Public A title, which would put the Lancers right back in the mix in the TOC, with Neptune expected to repeat as Group III champions.

     “This one stings a little bit, but now we need to focus on Non-Public A and hopefully get another shot at them,’’ Karpell said.

 

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