St. Joseph’s girls’ basketball starts off hot, takes step forward with win over Philipsburg-Osceola
Kathleen Simander helped gather her St. Joseph’s girls’ basketball teammates in a circle before Monday night’s game, as her coach and others echoed the same goal: We have to play our brand of basketball. We have to push the pace.
The Lady Wolfpack achieved that in short order, cruising to a 64-34 win over Philipsburg-Osceola after starting the game on an 11-0 run. P-O never came closer than five points after that, and it didn’t score until 5:01 into the first quarter.
“Usually we come out a little slow, which tends to hurt us,” Simander said after her team-leading 23 points. “So being able to come out and press the score really helped getting everything else in check.”
Added Brynn Hershbine, SJCA’s lone starting senior: “Our motto is embrace the pace.”
Coming off the first state tournament berth in school history last season, the Lady Wolfpack continue to boast high expectations — despite losing two prolific scorers and starting one freshman and two sophomores. So, they started the season with the mind-set to build up their stamina and make up for their inexperience by out-hustling their opponents.
On Monday, that game-plan couldn’t have been executed much better.
Freshman Brigid Scanlon teamed up early with teammate Lauren Ott for a two-man inside game, where Scanlon scored six points off two layups and a close-range shot in the game’s opening three minutes. That forced the Lady Mounties to switch from a zone press to a 2-3 zone mixed with some half-court man.
But, no matter what P-O tweaked, SJCA responded. Scanlon finished with 20 points, Simander scored at least four points in every quarter, and sophomore Kate Youngmark added 10 points.
“When it comes down to it, we just couldn’t hold them,” first-year P-O coach Brandon Myers said. “Every time we scored, it seemed like they’d just go right down and score. Credit goes to their offense tonight; they were that much better than our defense.”
Scanlon and Simander acted as imposing presences in the post, as most of their points came in the paint. Whenever they drove to the basket, scattered groans from P-O’s crowd would usually follow. Myers even shouted “Wake up!” early on, before his team responded to the 11-0 run with a 6-0 run of its own.
But that 11-6 score was as close as the game got. SJCA (6-6) regained control with another 10-0 run, immediately after P-O’s run, that continued into the second quarter. From that point on, St. Joseph’s kept at least a nine-point cushion against the Lady Mounties (2-10).
“We wanted to start off really fast and then slow it down toward the end of the game,” a smiling Scanlon said.
St. Joseph’s led 31-14 at halftime and 48-25 after the third quarter. But that doesn’t mean Philipsburg-Osceola was without some highlights.
Senior center Kyleigh Kennedy came alive in the second half, scoring 16 of her team-high 20 points in the final two quarters. The 5-foot-10 captain was 8-of-8 from the free-throw line and simply got off to a slow start, in part, her coach said, because she was pressing after the early 11-0 deficit.
“Kyleigh had a great game,” Myers added. “We always tell her, on defense especially, if she’s under control, she’s one of the better players in the Mountain League.”
Myers understands one quick glance at the boxscore, and it’s easy to overlook the progress his team has made since Week 1. But every day, he said, the Lady Mounties are getting a little better.
SJCA coach Kate Sosnoskie echoed that sentiment in regards to her own program, which doesn’t mind sharing how it wants to make the state tournament yet again this season.
“We’ve definitely grown,” she said. “It’s really nice to watch them improve each game and build upon what they’ve learned. It was a great team win for us.”
Added a grinning Simander: “This game was really important for our team.”
This story was originally published January 13, 2020 at 9:58 PM with the headline "St. Joseph’s girls’ basketball starts off hot, takes step forward with win over Philipsburg-Osceola."
