Crusaders Notch Comeback Win Over Thunderbolts

Any coach will tell you certain victories look better and are easier than others. But, no matter what the game looks like, a win is a win.

The Cranston East Thunderbolts (7-6, 6-5 in league play) hosted the The Prout School Crusaders (12-4, 10-2 in league play) in a girls basketball game on Wednesday night. It was a close game throughout, but Prout prevailed 36-31.

The biggest lead of the game for either team was only seven points. Both teams played tough defense all night long. 

Early on in the game a three point play by East senior Jesse Handler gave the Bolts a 4-2 lead. Prout's Emily Caswell answered with a layup to tie the game at six apiece.

Handler gave the Bolts a 10-6 lead converting a layup off the feed from freshman Emely Ramirez. Caswell put her team ahead 13-11 with a drive and runner off the glass. She was a force all night long, finishing with 21 points.

With about a minute left in the first half, Brittany Donovan sank a three ball upping Prout's lead to 18-14, which ended up being the score heading into halftime.

East's Kelsy Evje scored the first four points of the second half, tying the game. It remained a close game for the remainder of the half, as neither team could create a big lead. Each team brought a high level of defensive intensity, which led to a grind it out type of game.

Reilly drilled a three pointer with about ten minutes left and the game was tied again at 22. Caswell put her team up by two points, at 26-24, with three points the old fashioned way.

Reilly, who led East with 14 points, scored the next five points, including three shots from the foul line. The Bolts led 29-26 with about three minutes left in the game.

However, the Crusaders tightened up their defense and East went cold from the field. Over the next two and a half minutes, the Bolts were not able to score any points.

Caswell was the difference in tonight's game as she took over down the stretch. She scored eight points and had an assist during Prout's 10-0 run, which gave them a 36-29 lead.

On one of the biggest plays of the night, Caswell hustled for an offensive rebound and found teammate Jackie Tousignan for a layup as the horn sounded for the shot clock. After that bucket, Prout led 32-29, and Caswell sunk four free throws to end the run. The Crusaders won by the final score of 36-31.

Phil Quinn, Prout's head coach, felt his team was lucky to come away with a win. "Offensively, we did not run one set properly all night," he said.

The difference in the game was their defensive effort. "The defense came to play tonight," he added, "Bottom line, we just got a lot of stops."

Rich Perrotta, Bolts head coach, was happy with the effort of his team. "We are playing much better," he said, "We got good looks, but it was a tough night offensively."

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