Caitlin Leary, Paige Selhorn lead Carle Place to Nassau Class B championship

Caitlin Leary couldn’t have placed it any better.

With the shot clock down to five seconds and the double-team coming, Leary kept her eyes up and zinged a pass that hit Paige Selhorn in stride on a backdoor cut for an easy layup.

“I saw the backdoor was open,” Selhorn said. “I didn’t know if Caitlin was going to hit me or not, but people call us the dynamic duo for a reason.”

“Even though basketball isn’t her main sport, she knows the spacing and where to go,” Leary added. “I know I can always find her on the right pass.”

The picture-perfect play gave No. 1 Carle Place a nine-point lead with two minutes left in the Frogs’ 47-35 win over No. 2 East Rockaway in the Nassau Class B girls basketball championship game Friday at SUNY Farmingdale.

“For Caitlin to have the vision and for Paige to see that opening, that was the icing,” Carle Place coach Conor Reardon said. “That might’ve been the play of the year.”

Carle Place (15-6), which earned its 10th county title, will face Mattituck in the Long Island championship game at 5 p.m. on Tuesday at St. Joseph’s University in Patchogue.

Selhorn struggled to find her stroke until the end of the third quarter. The senior scored nine of her 17 points in the fourth quarter and got in a groove shooting from the top of the key. Selhorn’s three-pointer with 4:30 left gave the Frogs a 40-33 lead.

“I always tell her to keep shooting,” said Leary, a senior. “If she’s having an off day, we’ll keep feeding her the ball to tell her to keep shooting.”

Despite facing constant pressure and double-teams from the Rocks, Leary had 16 points and made a trio of three-pointers.

Carle Place’s defense was active all night, but the Frogs turned up the heat in the second half. Selhorn was especially busy in passing lanes, reeling in steals and converting them into points at the other end.

“Defense is our DNA,” Reardon said. “Our press, our halfcourt defense, our length . . . we’re just a really strong defensive team.”

“Defense wins championships, as you saw today,” added Selhorn, who will play lacrosse for the University of Cincinnati.

Milana D’Alessandro scored six points on two threes.

For East Rockaway (13-9), senior Emma Poland was nearly unstoppable, scoring 22 points from just about everywhere on the court. Putback layups, runners in the lane, three-pointers and free throws all went down for the 6-foot forward.

“Emma Poland was a nightmare to guard tonight,” Reardon said. “She was making everything, she was just tremendous. I won’t miss coaching against her next year.”