The .89¢ bucket of pop for the long drive to Northern Fort Wayne may have sounded like a great idea. But the need for "relief" nullified most of the joy as the quest to find the gym at Carroll High School in Huntertown was finally satisfied by asking directions of a teacher leaving the front of the school. Actually it was the urgent quest for the restroom first.

Even though Carroll may be a decent sized school undergoing some remodeling/additions, the gym for the freshman team was little more than a cold, dimly lit, yellowish cave. The freshman lost an ugly game. At least it was dark enough to hide the looks on their faces.

The JV played across the hall in the main gym, which is not much bigger than the WCHS freshman gym. Although Warsaw was up by 3 at the half, the Lady Chargers found a way to hold the Lady Tigers down and win 43-29.

DING, DING! The main event.

Both teams would come out swinging, but it would take the first minute and 7 seconds before Carroll finally drew first blood.

Warsaw's first points would come from Kayla Stout. The last Warsaw points in the first quarter would come from a 3 pointer by Kelci Freds to bring Warsaw a little closer at the end of the 1st quarter.

End of 1st Quarter: Carroll 14 - Warsaw 9

The momentum and the physicality of the game would increase as the time ticked away. Round 2 was definitely Tiger Territory. Sarah Shilling opened the quarter with a steal at the far end, passed to Freds, who dished the ball to Kaelee Sands who patiently waited for the opposition to pass over top her until she could put the ball in for 2. The next 3 points come from Kayla Stout's basket plus a foul. Carroll would respond with 2- 3 pointers. Freds replied with 3 of her own. The pattern of basket with foul seemed to keep repeating for some time as Warsaw's freshman, Lindsay Baker took her turn at the "bucket+1" special to tie the game at 22 apiece.

Freds hit a long shot off the Sands pass to put Warsaw up 26-24 with 1:29 in the half. A miss at the other end allowed Sands to make a long 2 pointer with about 40 seconds. Carroll called a time out at 30 seconds after throwing the ball away. It didn't help them as Freds drove with a vengeance from half court all the way to the paint like a woman possessed to give Warsaw 2 more just before the buzzer.

Halftime Score: Warsaw 30- Carroll 24

3rd Quarter: The Lady Chargers wasted no time getting the score back to within 2 points. Stout made a spectacular short spinning jumper to put Warsaw up 32 - 28. Both teams began trading points. About 3:21 left in the quarter, Carroll tied the score, but Warsaw would lead at the end 48-42 with each team scoring 18 points this period.

End of 3rd Quarter: Warsaw 48 - Carroll 42

Final Round: The intensity of the game was about to peak. Both teams were playing for keeps. Fouls? What fouls? There were a few inconvenient whistles here and there, but the race was on. Sands came out with the first points of the quarter answered immediately by Carroll.

Midway through the frame, Cendall Ogle made a gutsy charge out of triple coverage to get across the mid-court line only to be slammed into by Ciara Geiger. Stout scored off of that inbound. The Carroll Cheer block, wearing Neon Nation neon yellow T-shirts provided from the drug and alcohol prevention council, began singing "Sweet Caroline." No known reason why.

1:29 left in the game. Warsaw 54 - Carroll 52.

Carroll brought ball in, but when 3 Lady Tigers collided with a Lady Charger, Ogle came out with the ball. She passed to Freds who rimmed the ball in and out. No 3 pointer. Ogle finally drove the lane for 2, but Carroll answered with 2 of their own.

39.2 seconds left in the game. Warsaw 56- Carroll 54. Warsaw began playing "keep away." Sands was fouled by Geiger, but missed the 1 and 1. Carroll got the rebound and called time out.

18.1 seconds.

This game is about to be decided by the coaches. What plan would be best? Freds almost came up with a steal at the far end, but it rolled out of bounds. The inbound went to Gieger. She put it up. Miss. Grabbed by the 6 foot sophomore, Jenna Spadafora. Put back. Miss. Megan Reeder grabbed the ball in the outer, left corner and desperately pitched it back to anyone from her team that may have been standing at the arc on the top left side. Of the 3 girls standing there, Spandafora looked shocked to have come up with the ball.

1.2 seconds.

With "deer in the headlight eyes," Spandafora fulfilled the dream of many a young soul. Her panic stricken shot sailed into the air. The buzzer buzzed. Nothing but net.

Game over. Heartbreak City!

Final Score: Carroll 57 - Warsaw 56

Spandafora was swarmed by her team and cheer block. The Lady Tigers hung their heads at the nightmare of a 3rd loss. Ironically, Carroll had just lost Friday night in the almost identical fashion to Norwell. Guess they were just passing on what they learned.

Posted In: Girl's Sports > Basketball

Want to see more pictures? Click Here