Lady Cyclones Edge Lynbrook in Thriller, 48-36

With a raucous crowd rising and falling with each play, South Side led for the first 28 minutes before relinquishing the lead with 4:18 to go in the fourth on a free throw by Brooke Gertsman. That was the first and only time South Side did not control the lead.

After that, the Lady Cyclones (4-0) turned up the defensive pressure — forcing three of Lynbrook's 18 turnovers — and Christina Merrifield put South Side back on top with four points in the paint before her team iced the game with clutch free-throw shooting, hitting four of five in the final minute.

South Side coach Katie Dunn said she reiterated to her team that these are the type of games they need to win if they hope to make a run in the postseason.

“That was a playoff atmosphere against a great team," Dunn said.  "They were in it until the very end. When they took the lead, I just told the girls to take a deep breath, and reminded them the game was still ours. Christina was well-rested after getting in foul trouble, so she was re-energized and made two big baskets to put us back in it.”

The Lady Cyclones controlled the glass, which proved to be the difference in a hard fought, physical game. South Side grabbed 29 boards to the Owls 17, and controlled the pace of the game with its bigs in the paint. South Side's rebounding numbers were helped by the Owls poor three-point shooting night, where they shot 6 for 23 (29 percent) from behind the arc.

Lynbrook coach Heather Manikas  said she was impressed with the Lady Cyclones' zone defense, and how they crashed the boards. 

“We were a little stagnant, and they did a great job out-rebounding us," she said. "Megan Lonergan took us hard to the basket, and they boxed out well. We struggled against their zone; they are a big team and that put us at a disadvantage.”

Lonergan was the offensive leader for the Lady Cyclones, leading the team with 11 points. The most important player for South Side, however, was fellow senior Lauren Lopresti, who pulled down nine rebounds, and was knocked out of the game twice with injuries while trying to take charges.

“Number 20 [Lopresti] was our most important player today,” Dunn said. “She stayed in control of the defense all game. She may not have the numbers on offense, but she controlled the defense. She came back twice, any other kid wouldn’t have come back but there she was running the defense.”

With the victory over Lynbrook, South Side has dispatched its toughest opposition in its quest for an undefeated season. The Lady Cyclones will face Lawrence at home Tuesday as they look to improve to 5-0.