Lady Colts Come Up Short in Elmont Game

The Calhoun girls basketball held steady against their opponents, the Elmont Lady Spartans, for much of the game on Friday, but couldn't come up with a win.

The 42-41 loss does not affect the Lady Colts’ playoff hopes, but had to have been particularly galling after having withstood a determined Elmont effort for more than three quarters and finally pulling out to a lead.

But as the clock ticked down, Calhoun was unable to convert from the foul line in key one-and-one situations, while the Lady Spartans streaked past them for the win.

“It was a physical game, like nobody’s business, a rough game,” said Dave Radtke, coach of the Lady Colts.

“It was a tough game,” said Elly Rosenblum, Calhoun co-captain. “We beat them the first time around, and knew it wasn’t going to be easy.”

The Lady Colts (8-5 league; 10-5 overall), who handed Elmont (11-2) one of its only losses of the season in mid-January, were able to get the Spartans darting point guard Goldie Harrison into foul trouble early, and played toe-to-toe basketball against the strong forward play of Alex Clark (14 points), Bria Fisher (10 points) and the outside shooting game of Cassandra Chery.

In fact, it was a back and forth game for three and a half quarters, with contributions from an array of Calhoun players – among them Meghan O’Sullivan (18 points, seven rebounds, two blocks, two steals and an assist), Jessica Ruggiero (eight points, 13 rebounds), Danielle Lossee (nine points, two assists and one rebound), Dana Silvester (four points, seven rebounds, three steals and an assist).

Also contributing was point guard Rosenblum, with two rebounds two assists and a steal; Carly Singer, with two points, two rebounds and a steal; and AnneMarie White, with two rebounds.

Calhoun never trailed by much, though repeatedly during the game, Elmont pulled ahead – 11-6 after one, 17-16 at the half, and 29-25 at the end of the third quarter, despite a 6-1 run early on which put the Lady Colts up by three.

The heart of the game came in the fourth quarter, however, as O’Sullivan came out of the box on fire – knocking down three buckets early, and then feeding Ruggiero inside who shouldered up for two. Lossee’s second three pointer of the day came next, and Calhoun was sitting on a four point lead with 3:47 remaining.

Elmont made their first big run with 2:20 to go. But a five point run for the Lady Colts – a Silvester jump shot and a well-executed inbounds play that led to another Lossee three pointer – made it 41-36 with 1:18 showing.

But Elmont wouldn’t quit. Clark put down two foul shots to narrow the lead, Calhoun failed on three separate one-and-one opportunities, and it remained for the Spartan’s Harrison, returning to the game with a necklace of fouls around her neck, to score the final four points for Elmont – both of them transitional game baskets against Calhoun‘s man-to-man defense – and steal the victory.

“The one and one‘s killed us,” Radtke said. “We got what we wanted at the end – we just didn‘t execute.”

Calhoun hosts the Kennedy Cougars, also 8-5 in league action, on Feb. 14 at 6:30 p.m., in a regular-season ending battle for sole possession of third place in Conference AA-III.

                        1        2     3     4    F

Calhoun        6     10    9    16    41

Elmont         11     6      12  13    42