Edison’s season ends in Bellaire
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BELLAIRE -- To say that the Bellaire Lady Reds' playoff victory Tuesday evening was dominant may actually be somewhat understated.
Bellaire cruised to a 26-point lead after the first quarter and never looked back, en route to an 80-24 victory over Edison, setting up a Saturday matchup against Barnesville.
"For our girls, we preach that if they can out-rebound a team, then we think we are going to win the game, so that's one of the things we want to focus on. And, we always want to get after them," Bellaire coach John Farrier said concerning his team's tenacious performance. "That's been our M.O. over the last couple years is to create turnovers and make people feel uncomfortable, and our girls have been doing that for a while. They did that just the way they come out with most games. They come out, they bother you, and they make you uncomfortable and try to cause the other team make mistakes. They did what they normally do when they come out for a game."
To echo Farrier's point, his charges out-rebounded the Wildcats 38-23, while Edison turned the ball over 29 times to just 12 for the hosts.
For Edison coach Jeff Stone, it was a reflective look at a potentially bright future.
"I pointed out to the girls that they (Bellaire) have a good team," he said. "They hustle, and that's what we need to work on, quickness and a lot of shooting. Squaring up, they do a good job at that. We lose two, we are young and we only have one junior, so we are going to work on a lot of stuff offseason, shooting and everything. But, we bring the nucleus back to our team.
"Yes, it wasn't that productive this year, but again, being young, you expect a lot of mistakes, and we do make a lot of them unfortunately. There are some girls there that definitely, with their playing time this year, are going to be experienced, even if they are going to be sophomores. The majority of them are freshmen out there playing, except for my two seniors. I hope that experience this year carries over into next year."
Bellaire (20-3) took off on a 7-0 run, while causing turnovers on the first four possessions for Edison (1-22), who took a timeout at the 6:03 mark after Maci Crozier scored off of a steal. The Wildcats got their first bucket at 4:53 when Lauren Ferrali split a pair of Lady Red defenders to lay one in. In contrast, the hosts saw five different players dent the scoring column in the initial frame, as they subbed liberally, operating out of full and half court defenses crossing up the visitors, garnering a total of 10 steals in the opening frame.
Bellaire also showed its strength in the paint, highlighted by offensive rebounds and putbacks by three different players before Michaela Flaherty sent it through the hoop. Natalie Stoner hit shots from inside and out, including a pair of 3-pointers, to score 13 in the opening quarter. The hosts held a 31-5 lead on the scoreboard after the first, also holding a definitive 12-4 edge on the glass.
Edison was able to find more offensive production in the second, receiving a trio of 3s from Ashley Grafton. The hosts were just too strong, though, as seven players combined for 23 points in the quarter, with Stoner netting five and Flaherty and Maci Crozier scoring four each. The Lady Reds also were able to continue to give the Wildcats fits defensively, forcing eight more turnovers in the second, helping to put Bellaire up 54-18 at the half.
The second half was contested under a running clock, as Bellaire held a lead higher than 35. Bellaire used a multitude of lineups in the third and was still strong defensively, forcing six more Edison miscues in the frame and holding the visitors to just one made field goal during the eight minutes span. The hosts held a 68-22 lead after three.
The fourth quarter saw Bellaire outscore Edison, 12-2, as six different Lady Reds scored a bucket apiece for the hosts, pushing the final verdict to an 80-24 count.
In all, 10 different Bellaire players scored with four reaching double figures. Stoner led all scorers with 21, backed by a 14-point, five-steal effort by Crozier. Flaherty recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Kat Davis finished with 10 points and six boards.
Grafton's nine led Edison, and Ferralli finished with eight.
Bellaire 80, Edison 24
Edison 5-13-4-2 -- 24
Bellaire 31-23-14-12 -- 80
EDISON: Petrisko 0 3-4 3; Fiedorczyk 0 0-0 0; Portkrajac 0 0-0 0; Ferralli 4 0-2 8; Keenan 2 0-0 4; Meadows 0 0-0 0; Scott 0 0-0 0; Grafton 3 0-0 9; Murphey 0 0-0 0; Swickard 0 0-0 0; Montgomery 0 0-0 0; Fox 0 0-0 0; Furbee 0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 9, 3-6: 24.
BELLAIRE: Davis 5 0-0 10; Purtiman 2 0-0 4; Crozier 7 0-0 14; Stoner 8 3-6 21; Flaherty 6 0-0 12; Leigh 0 0-0 0; Miller 2 0-0 4; Falcone 2 1-2 5; Sochor 0 0-0 0; Ault 2 0-0 4; McCarthy 1 0-0 2; Beckett 0 0-0 0; TOTALS: 36, 6-10: 80.
3-POINT GOALS: Edison: 3 (Grafton 3); Bellaire: 2 (Stoner 2).