Kayla Solomon lifts St. Mary's to state CHSAA AA semifinal victory
Kayla Solomon hits a three-pointer in state CHSAA AA semifinal at Christ the King on Thursday, March 9, 2023. Credit: Patrick E. McCarthy
Shutting down the St. Mary’s girls basketball team’s offense has typically been a tall task this season.
For Monsignor Scanlan in the state CHSAA AA semifinals, there was a stretch of time where it seemed they could accomplish it.
But St. Mary’s wouldn’t go away easily.
The Gaels proved their defense was just as powerful as they never lost their lead and went on to win, 37-33, Thursday night at Christ the King in Queens.
St. Mary’s (24-4) advances to the state CHSAA AA final against Nichols on Saturday night at Fordham.
“The intensity of our defense was at an all-time high,” Kayla Solomon said. “We were talking to each other a lot which I think helped us keep them from getting a lead.”
The Gaels led 27-12 by halftime and Solomon scored nine of her 11 points in the first half.
“We faced (Scanlan) in the state final last year when we defeated them, so we knew where the weak spots were,” guard Taryn Barbot said. “We came out strong and held them down.”
But Scanlan started to pick up their perimeter shooting in the second half to score 13 points, and a suffocating press would stymie the Gaels to just five points. St. Mary’s was left with a 32-27 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
“We were taking too much time with the ball,” said Barbot, who had 10 points. “There were too many shot clock violations, and we just weren’t clicking offensively in the second half.”
With four minutes left, Scanlan cut the lead to just two points. St. Mary’s Tara Murray hit two free throws, but a three-pointer by Diamond Fields held the Gaels to a one-point lead.
But Barbot was confident that there was still a chance to prove themselves.
“I knew that if we kept going strong with our defense, we could get a chance to at least make a few free throws and hold on for the win,” Barbot said.
They did just that.
The Gaels’ final points came as Solomon hit two free throws and Barbot added another in the final minute.
“We would get our offense going with 10 seconds left on the shot clock,” coach Kevin White said. “That’s something we need to fix for the final.”
White added: “We have an opportunity to come back and play at our level on Saturday. They’ll use this to come back and finish like the strong team they are.”
